Why? This question is central to Mr. Doug Shipman, an Emory alum, the founding CEO of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, and former CEO of BrightHouse and the Woodruff Arts Center in downtown Atlanta. Mr. Shipman grew up in a small conservative town in Arkansas, curious about the world he had only read about. In this conversation, Mr. Shipman and I discuss his childhood memories, his undergraduate years at Emory University, and how he became passionate about social justice and politics. He shares many stories about the social justice campaigns happening at Emory in his time, leading the project for the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, his thoughts on the Civil Rights Movement(s) and #blacklivesmatter on social media, and how he learned to always ask questions. Our conversation takes us from social justice to philosophy to religion and back to social justice, showing how complicated, yet interconnected, the topics we cover in this conversation are. I hope you enjoy this 60 minute episode about our desire to always ask questions and how to respect the answers we receive!
