Photo Credit: Labor Community Strategy Center
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – Prairie View A&M University welcomes Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson as its 2022-2023 Activist-in-Residence. Henderson, a long-time community organizer and the first Black woman to serve as co-executive director of the Highlander Research and Education Center (a social justice leadership training school and cultural center in Tennessee), brings a unique perspective on the needs of rural Black communities.
She’s earned a reputation as a highly respected thought leader and changemaker. Now, Henderson wants to bring her experience and spirit of servant leadership to PVAMU.
“I believe in the power of a southern HBCU, and Texas has been and continues to be where so much amazing work for social good is happening and has happened,” she said.
A Natural Leader
As a proud, working-class Affrilachian (Black Appalachian) woman born and raised in the south, she’s an avid opponent of mountaintop removal mining and environmental racism in central and southern Appalachia.
Henderson’s national reputation as an organizer, leadership in movement development and training, and her connection to Appalachia made her the obvious choice for the residency.
“Prairie View is in a rural county with a strong agricultural program; it is important that we find ways to think about how discrimination and injustice might look different for people who live outside of urban spaces,” said Ruth J. Simmons Center for Race and Justice Director Melanye T. Price.
The Activist-in-Residence Program is a Ruth J. Simmons Center for Race and Justice initiative that identifies grassroots reformers who promote national policies and build movements for diverse communities. Activists host campus workshops, facilitate group discussions, lead lectures and support projects to encourage student dialogue.
In the spring, selected students will visit the Highlander Center in Tennessee. The center is a cultural hub founded in 1932 that’s been the catalyst for many modern-day leaders.
“Students will experience what generations of activists have done to learn how effective movements are built and sustained, like Martin Luther King Jr., John Lewis, Rosa Parks, and other Black activists who changed the world,” said Dr. Price.
They will participate in workshops and learn strategies for improving their communities and, by extension, the nation. Future scholars will engage in the education, language and culture of the Highlander Center and impacted communities and leave with renewed knowledge, courage and vision.
A Natural-born Activist
Whether it’s advocating for underpaid workers, LGBTQUIA+ communities, or reproductive and international human rights, the central theme in Henderson’s career and commitment to service is building something bigger than herself.
She’s served on the National Council of the Student Environmental Action Coalition, the Chicago SNCC History Project, the United Students Against Sweatshops National Coordinating, Political Education, and Collective Liberation Committees.
Henderson is also a member and former regional organizer at Project South and has served as an organizational representative on the Governance Council of the Southern Movement Assembly.
However, Henderson’s work is more than what she does. It’s who she is and what she hopes she inspires others to become. She was born into activism and revolution in Southeast Tennessee as the daughter of a Black Panther who immersed her in community organizing at an early age.
Henderson earned a B.A. in English and African and African American History at East Tennessee State University. There she acted as the President of the Black Affairs Association and the Rho Upsilon Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Over the years, she’s continued to develop and refine her voice as a leader, influencing intergenerational social movements throughout the south.
She is an active leader of the Movement for Black Lives and has been instrumental in developing the Vision for Black Lives, a list of policy demands for Black power, freedom and justice.
Henderson also helped create the BREATHE Act, a bill framework for disinvesting taxpayer money from historically discriminatory policing and reinvesting the funds in public programming in underserved communities. She believes the only way to improve public safety is to attack the root cause of poverty.
A Natural Fit
Henderson looks forward to being a student of thought and gaining more insight into the University’s rich legacy and history from scholars and faculty.
“Prairie View has the incredible Melanye T. Price, and I would follow her anywhere,” said Henderson.
She hopes to provide the next generation of activists with the tools, skills and insight to remain resilient in the face of adversity.
“I have a lot to learn and give back, and I am honored beyond measure to be Prairie View’s 2022-23 Activist-in-Residence,” said Henderson.
Click here to learn more about Henderson.
By Whitney Stovall
-PVAMU-