MORE AFRICAN-AMERICAN LEADERS ACROSS AMERICA JOIN NEW YORK LEADERS IN RAISING FUNDS TO BRING “SELMA” TO STUDENTS FOR FREE
NEW CITIES BOSTON,
NASHVILLE, NEW JERSEY, PHILADELPHIA, SAN FRANCISCO, SARASOTA, FL, AND
WESTCHESTER ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE NATIONWIDE EFFORT
NEW YORK CITY COMPLETELY SOLD OUT
HOLLYWOOD,
CA (January 12, 2015) – In an unprecedented effort lead by a team of
African-American business leaders in New York, organizations across the
U.S. coordinated
a massive national campaign to find African-American business leaders
to underwrite free admission to the Golden Globe-nominated film “SELMA”
for students around the country.
New
cities Boston, Nashville, New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco,
Sarasota, FL, and Westchester have come together to create funds that
will allow students in these
locations to see “SELMA” for free at participating theaters.
The
efforts are inspired by the success of the program in New York City, in
which 27 African-American business leaders created a fund for 27,000 of
the city’s 7th,
8th and 9th grade students to see the film for
free. Due to the overwhelming demand, the New York City effort sold out
in the very first weekend and was expanded to 75,000 tickets.
“Our
goal was to educate as many children as we could about the historical
importance and contemporary relevance of the march in Selma,” said Bill
Lewis, Co-Chairman
of Investment Banking, Lazard. “Seeing so many business leaders in
other cities join this spontaneous initiative is a wonderful outcome for
the children and for our country.”
The
students in these cities will show a student ID or report card at the
box office of any participating theater for free admittance. The
programs begin today, January
12th and run through January 19th (Martin Luther King, Jr. Day) or while tickets last.
Business
leaders in additional cities are currently organizing commitments and
participation from community organizations. Those cities and leaders
will be announced
Wednesday, January 14th.
The local business leaders who are leading the efforts are:
Bennie Wiley, Principal, The Wiley Group and Flash Wiley, Counsel, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, in Boston (10,000 tickets)
“How
inspiring to see so many members of the African-American community come
together to expose our young people to this important chapter in
history,” said Bennie Wiley
and Flash Wiley. “We are delighted to join this extraordinary effort.”
Lawrence Jackson, Chairman, SourceMark, LLC, Former President, Dollar General, in Nashville (10,000 tickets)
“Director
Ava DuVernay has created a film about an important piece of American
history,” said Jackson. “Nashville is privileged to raise funds to help
bring the film
to as many students as possible.”
David
R. Jones, President & CEO, CastleOak Securities, L.P., Anré
Williams, President, Global Merchant Services, American Express, and
Carla A. Harris, Vice Chairman,
Morgan Stanley in Northern New Jersey (10,000 tickets)
“New
Jersey is honored to join its friends in New York in bringing ‘SELMA’
to students who may not otherwise have the opportunity to hear Martin
Luther King, Jr.’s message,”
said Jones. “We are grateful to the leaders in New York, whose
generosity and vision lead to this movement.”
Leslie Brun,
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, SARR
Group, LLC, in Philadelphia (10,000 tickets)
“Philadelphia
is happy to do its part in helping students experience the story of Dr.
King’s journey in Alabama,” said Brun. “The challenges he faced there
will still
ring true today for many of our country’s youth.”
Charles Ward, Chief Development Officer, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, in San Francisco (10,000 tickets)
“We've
managed to raise $100,000 in a relatively short period of time. That
will send 10,000 kids to see the movie,” said Ward. “We do expect that
there may be even
greater demand. We'd like to cover as many admissions as possible.”
The Grain Family in Sarasota, FL (1,000 tickets)
“‘SELMA’
tells the story of Dr. King’s march so powerfully and so beautifully,
that we are honored to contribute to such a worthwhile cause,” said the
Grain Family.
Michael V. Littlejohn, Partner, IBM Global Business Services in Westchester
(6,000 tickets)
“We are so inspired by the program in New York City and are humbled to be able to contribute to its success,” said Littlejohn.
For
a list of participating theaters in select cities offering free
admission to students during this program and for information on group
sales, visit
www.SelmaMovie.com/studenttickets
To help get the word out about the program, tweet using the hashtag #SelmaForStudents
Directed
by Ava DuVernay and starring David Oyelowo as Martin Luther King Jr.,
“SELMA” earned a Golden Globe for Best Song for “Glory” by Common and
John Legend and
was nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director.
The
film also stars Tom Wilkinson, Cuba Gooding Jr., Alessandro Nivola,
Giovanni Ribisi, Common, Carmen Ejogo, Lorraine Toussaint, with Tim Roth
and Oprah Winfrey as
“Annie Lee Cooper.”
Paramount
Pictures, Pathé, and Harpo Films present “SELMA.” Produced by Christian
Colson, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Oprah Winfrey, the film is
executive produced
by Brad Pitt, Cameron McCracken, Diarmuid McKeown, Nik Bower, Ava
DuVernay, Paul Garnes and Nan Morales. The film is written by Paul Webb.
“SELMA” is directed by Ava DuVernay.
“SELMA”
is the story of a movement. The film chronicles the
tumultuous three-month period in 1965, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
led a dangerous campaign to secure
equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march
from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson)
signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant
victories for the civil rights movement. Director
Ava DuVernay’s “SELMA” tells the story of how the revered leader and
visionary Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) and his brothers
and sisters in the movement prompted change that forever altered
history.
“SELMA” is playing in theaters nationwide. To learn more about the film, go to
http://www.selmamovie.com
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