The Lowery family will hold its annual fundraiser for the Joseph E. Lowery Institute for Justice and Human Rights Sunday at Morehouse College.
TV personality Steve Harvey will host the event and Jamie Foxx will perform, according to a release from the institute.
The event begins at 6 p.m. and will honor Joseph Lowery's 92nd birthday with the musical "I've Known Rivers," celebrating the life and work of the long-time civil rights leader. The event will also pay tribute to Evelyn Lowery, Joseph Lowery's wife and a women's rights activist who died in late September.
Mayor Kasim Reed and Delta Airlines President and CEO Richard Anderson will be honorary chairmen at the event.
The Joseph E. Lowery Agent of Change award will be presented to Atlanta movie mogul TV star Tyler Perry at the event.
“Tyler Perry serves as the perfect example of someone who has worked tirelessly as a champion for the common good,” said Cheryl Lowery, executive director of the institute. “Central to the mission of the Lowery Institute is to empower, inspire and train current and future leaders as “change agents” to explore the moral, ethical and theological imperatives for justice and human rights.”
More than 2,000 people are expected to attend. All proceeds will benefit the Lowery Institute, according to the release.
Joseph Lowery was the co-founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and lead the organization for 20 years. President Barack Obama awarded Lowery the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in 2009.
Updates
Tyler Perry was among those on hand to accept the inaugural Joseph E. Lowery Agent of Change Award during "I've Known Rivers: A Legendary Life," a tribute to Lowery's 92nd birthday at Morehouse College in Atlanta on Sunday, October 6, 2013. The celebration included appearances by Chris Tucker Malcolm Jamal Warner, Jamie Foxx, Tyler Perry and others.
About the Author
