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January 8, 2002 JOHN ARTIS TO SPEAK AT BOISE STATE HUMAN RIGHTS DINNER John Artis, the alleged accomplice of Rubin "Hurricane" Carter in a triple murder in 1966, will be the keynote speaker at the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Dinner at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 23. Artis will speak on "Prejudice and Injustice." The dinner, sponsored by the Boise State University Black Student Alliance and Student Programs Board, will be held in the Student Union Jordan Ballroom. Tickets are $17.50 general and $14 for students through Select-a-Seat. Artis was a 19-year-old athlete, Boy Scout and altar boy with a college scholarship when he was accused of murdering three people in Paterson, N.J. Although he maintained his innocence, he was convicted and sentenced to three concurrent life terms, with a chance of parole after 15 years. While in prison, Artis started teaching adult education classes, helping hundreds of men become literate and earn their GEDs. He was president of the jail’s branch of the Junior Chamber of Commerce, vice president of the Lifers program and as a prison representative aired the grievances of prisoners to the guards. In 1971, after a riot in which guards were taken hostage, he convinced the prisoners to release the guards. For that act, he was transferred to a minimum security facility where he attended Glasboro State College and earned a degree in business administration. Since his release on parole in December 1981, Artis has worked with troubled kids and is now a counselor at a detention center in Norfolk, Va. In addition to the address by Artis, the dinner will feature entertainment by Boise State’s Vocal Jazz Ensemble and interpretive dancing by Terrie Tyus. Hurricane Carter will speak at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 24, also in the Jordan Ballroom. The two rarely speak together, but Artis and Carter were booked by separate campus organizations and have both agreed to appear. As a bonus event, St. Paul Baptist Church will kick off the week’s events with a musical presentation at 3 and 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 20. Cherie Buckner and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Gospel Choir will perform free concerts at St. Paul Baptist Church, 14th and Bannock, at 3 p.m. and at First Presbyterian Church, 10th and State, at 7 p.m. Donations will benefit St. Paul Baptist Church ministries. For more information on Artis, contact the Cultural Center at 426-4259. For a complete list of Martin Luther King Jr./Idaho Human Rights Celebration events, call 426-4636 or visit news.boisestate.edu. Contact: Media Contact:
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