With it being Campaign season, Ohio State gets many visitors. Too many to go see at times. John Legend came a couple weeks ago, and I missed him because of class. Bruce Springsteen gave a packed out concert on campus as well. The acclaimed Princeton professor and Social activist, Cornel West payed us a visit last month in the Hale Center, and I even saw him at Church the morning he came to speak. This week we heard from the "King of Calypso" himself and actor turned activist, Harry Belafonte.

He gave a speech about Youth and Violence in society and tied in different aspects of politcs and racial conflicts that he has experienced in his 81 years of life. He was good friends with Dr. Martin Luther King, and they were only a year apart. I remember watching him the hit movie musical, "Carmen Jones" with actress Dorothy Dandridge. I also got a chance to see him at a Martin Luther King breakfast in Birmingham, AL when I was in middle school.

I got to be in the Media room with all the other journalists before his speech began. I had a camera from Buckeye TV with me, but conveniently didn't bring a tape so that was a lost opportunity. But I tried to forgive myself and make the most of the experience and really just listened to all he had to say.

He spoke on how the U.S. has the largest prison population in the world and there are more Black people in prison than on College campuses. He said entertainers have to become politcally active because of their great influence, and how they can reach people no politician can. When he first started acting, the famous actor/activist/athlete Paul Robeson came to one of his plays and told him," Get the world to sing your song and they will want to know who you are." Belafonte said he took those words to heart and then he broke out in song, singing his popular "Day-O" song, and he still had a good voice on him too.

The older generation really has a lot of wisdom because they've been through so much and have had to fight and struggle for things youth today obtain freely. So it was nice to hear from the legendary Belafonte and be humbled.
Some of his other memorable quotes:

"In our quest to integrate, we will be integrating into a burning house so we have no choice but to become firemen."

"Solution is in the eyes of what you know."

Mr. Belafonte in the Fawcett Center after his talk