Athens Reporter

The Athens-Clarke County Library invites the public to a panel discussion featuring four Athens authors as they discuss their books and Black History Month on Saturday, Feb. 11, at 3:00 pm.

Featured authors include Mokah Jasmine Johnson, Mykeisha Ross, Barnard Sims and Hattie Thomas Whitehead.

Mokah Jasmine Johnson is an educator, civil rights activist, author, motivational speaker and social entrepreneur. She co-founded Athens Anti-Discrimination Movement, the Athens Hip-Hop Awards and the Athens MLK Day Parade & Festival with her husband Knowah. She's the author of "Spirit of An Activist: Stop Sitting on the Side Lines" and "Let's Talk About the School to Prison Pipeline."

Mykeisha Ross is a community activist and advocate. She founded Youth is Life, a nonprofit organization dedicated to breaking the cycle of generational poverty. She's the author of "Family Secrets Lead to Generation Curses."

Hattie Thomas Whitehead is the founder of the Athens StepUp Scholarship Program for Athens-Clarke County students. As a Linnentown first descendent, Hattie is President and Community Outreach Coordinator for the Linnentown Project. Hattie is the author of "Giving Voice to Linnentown."

Barnard Sims is the retired owner of Barnard's Hair Salon. He created his own talk show, The Way It Is, to amplify the Black voices that are often drowned out in the rural South. He is also a United States Chess Federation certified coach who teaches chess at the Boys & Girls Club and sponsors student book publications as part of Leap for Literacy. He's the author of "The Southern Awakening: A Black Man's Guide to Liberating the Rural South."

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call (706) 613-3650 or visit athenslibrary.org/athens. The Athens-Clarke County Library is located at 2025 Baxter Street,

Original source can be found here.