Cornel West at the U of Memphis

After our Thursday night meeting at Caritas Village (a wonderful venue, btw!), Jessica and I headed over to the U of Memphis to see Dr. Cornel West, the philosopher author of such seminal works as Race Matters and Democracy Matters. Unfortunately, we didn't anticipate the incredible turnout for this event. The University's Rose Theatre, where Dr. West was scheduled to appear, offered seating for 900 people. Those seats were all taken. Theatre staff then added an extra 150 seats on the stage, which were also taken up. Jessica and I arrived at 7:25 (it started at 7:30), and there was literally a line stretching from the theatre all the way down to Zach Curlin Avenue (we estimated about 300 people waiting in line). Needless to say, we were turned away. While we were disappointed that we couldn't hear Dr. West speak, we both agreed that the huge turnout was definitely a very good thing. It shows that a lot (!) of people could and would come out on a cold Thursday night and stand in line to hear someone talk about race in America.