IF YOU GO:
What: Marian Edelman
Where: Hendricks Chapel
When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
How much: Free

Marian Edelman works every day to advocate for disadvantaged children and their families. She will enlighten students and the Syracuse University community on her work in a lecture titled “A Voice of Children.”

Edelman will speak at 7 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel as part of the University Lecture Series. The purpose of the lecture is to educate students on Edelman’s work for children, said Esther Gray, coordinator for University Lectures and special assistant for academic affairs.

Syracuse University has had its eye on bringing Edelman to speak for nine years, Gray said.

“Mrs. Edelman has been at the top of our wish list from the beginning of University Lectures in 2001,” Gray said. “She rarely accepts speaking engagements, so it has taken us this long and with the assistance of a friend of Edelman’s who is now at SU to entice her to come to Syracuse.”

Edelman is the founder and president of Children’s Defense Fund. Founded in 1973, the fund’s mission, “Leave No Child Behind,” aims to ensure a healthy, fair, safe and moral start for every child and wishes to ensure a successful passage to adulthood with the help of families and communities, according to its Web site.

In her lecture she will draw from her newest book, “The Sea is So Wide and My Boat is So Small: Chartering a Course for the Next Generation,” released in September 2008, which asserts that adults are responsible for the abuse and poverty of children.

Derek Kirch, a freshman music education major, said he has heard of Edelman’s work before, but he does not know if her lecture will spark enough interest with students.

“She is a wonderful advocate for the underprivileged and disadvantaged children and families in this country,” Kirch said. “I don’t think she’ll find the right audience here at a university. While there are many people who believe in causes like this, I don’t believe that she’ll find a large enough audience for this cause here.”

Although Kirch said he does not think Edelman will draw a big audience, he would like to attend the event because he believes the voice of struggling Americans should be heard by all.

Stephanie Willmott, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, said bringing Edelman to SU can help students broaden their horizons.

“We live in a Syracuse bubble, and we don’t really think about what goes on past the edge of campus,” Willmott said. “I think sometime students need a wake-up call to think about kids who don’t have the chance to go to college and don’t have the privileges we’ve been given.”

Edelman’s life has been one of service, Gray said. She said hearing about Edelman’s work and experiences will be beneficial to students and faculty, Gray said.

Before working with the Children’s Defense Fund, Edelman directed the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund office in Jackson, Miss., in the mid-’60s and was the first woman to ever be admitted to the Mississippi Bar, according to her biography on the fund’s Web site.

Gray encourages all students and faculty to come out and see what Edelman has to offer.

“It doesn’t matter what your academic discipline,” Gray said. “Her message is one of being a giving human being, and it’s one I would hope all of our students would want to hear.”

Published on April 5, 2010 at 12:00 pm

Contact Meghin: medelane@syr.edu | @meghinwithani