Brilliant Black American Speeches

LSU OLLI Class to be Presented at the West Baton Rouge Museum

Sign up to take part in a six-week LSU OLLI course entitled Brilliant Black American Speeches presented by instructor, Dr. Olivia Pass that will take place at the West Baton Rouge Museum. Classes will be held on Tuesdays from 10 AM – 12 PM from February 24 - March 31, 2026. 

Join facilitator, Dr. Olivia Pass who will lead participants in listening to and discussing prominent speeches spanning from the 1850’s to 2004. Speeches covered will include Frederick Douglass’ “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July,” given to the Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester, New York on July 5, 1852, “Ain’t I a Woman” by Sojourner Truth delivered  in 1851 at the Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio,  James Baldwin’s “Pindrop Speech” given on February 18, 1965 in Cambridge, England in a debate between him and William F. Buckley, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream Speech” on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial as well as his “Birmingham Jail” letter which became a speech, and Barack Obama’s “2004 DNC Keynote Address” on July 27, 2004 in Boston. People of any or no political party are welcome to come and give their opinions about these speeches and note the importance of the First Amendment, good writing, and great oratory.

Dr. Olivia McNeely Pass is retired from Nicholls State University, where she was professor of American Literature and Composition. She has served as editor of the Louisiana English Journal and as associate director of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities. Her work has appeared in Louisiana Review, English Journal, Journal of Medical Humanities, and elsewhere.

Participants DO need to be members of the OLLI program. For nonmembers interested in joining the class, the annual membership fee is $50 which comes with options to take part in additional activities throughout the year. Advanced, paid registration of a $45 course fee is also required. Early Bird registration begins January 26 and ends Feb. 8.  During that time, the course is $40. For membership and registration information, visit ce.lsu.edu/OLLI or call 225-578-2500.