"The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them."
–Ida B. Wells
Dr. Charles L. Hughes is the director of the Lynne & Henry Turley Memphis Center at Rhodes College and Associate Professor of Urban Studies, with affiliations in Africana Studies and History. A historian of race, culture, and the South, he has published two acclaimed books and numerous articles, and has spoken to audiences in the United States and internationally. A native of Wisconsin, he can be found on Twitter at @CharlesLHughes2.
Myles Franklin is an alumnus of Memphis Central High School and George Washington University. During his senior year of high school in 2017, he became involved with the Lynching Sites Project after learning of Central’s frightful involvement in the lynching of Ell Persons. As student body president, he knew that he could spread awareness and help shed light on the darkness that had taken place 100 years earlier. Nearly five years later, Myles has reconnected with LSP to continue to shed light on the Ell Persons tragedy and other lynchings in the Mid-South area.
Khari Bowman is a program coordinator at Facing History and Ourselves. Her journey with Facing History started about seven years ago as a high school student in Memphis, where she took a Facing History elective course. While completing a course project, she and her classmates learned of the wrongful lynching of Ell Persons and decided to make their community aware of it. They raised money for a historical marker and were a part of a ceremony that commemorated his life and brought awareness to their community. She earned a B.A.
As associate program director at Facing History and Ourselves, Sarah Stuart leads district and school partnerships and provides professional development. She also plans and facilitates events and workshops. Sarah joined Facing History in 2010 after many years of teaching AP psychology and the Facing History Holocaust and Human Behavior course.