NNPA’s Chavis to Teach Racism Course at Duke

DURHAM, NC — Duke University plans to welcome National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. as the 2024 Environmental Justice and Racial Equity Fellow. A distinguished civil rights leader, global business figure, faith leader, and public intellectual, Chavis will bring his wealth of experience to the inaugural fellowship, linking his teaching, research, and service contributions with Duke’s overarching strategic objectives, notably climate change and racial equity. “I believe [the] Rev. Dr. Chavis embodies the history and hopes of Duke University. His experience at the crossroads of church and society will inspire our racial and environmental justice work,” said Dean Edgardo A. Colón-Emeric of the Duke Divinity School. “It’s a gift, in this centennial year, to welcome back a distinguished alum of Duke Divinity School and a prophetic intellectual from rural North Carolina.” Throughout his illustrious career, Chavis, a North Carolina native, has been a stalwart advocate for social, environmental, and political justice, coining the term “environmental racism” and leading prominent organizations such as the NAACP, National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, and National Council of Churches. An organizer of the Million Man March, Chavis has led the NNPA, the trade association of...