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Glover shows Wright State his academic, activist side
The actor visits to give lecture on 'challenges facing African nations.'
Friday, January 23, 2009
FAIRBORN — Danny Glover brought a side of his life to Wright State University on Thursday, Jan. 22, that most fans of his hit action films would probably be unfamiliar with.
That would be his broad knowledge of economics and trade, opinions about relations with Africa, and his takes on national politics — mostly from a social activist's perspective.
On the heels of the inauguration of President Barack Obama and in remembrance of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Glover packed an 800-seat auditorium for his lecture on "challenges facing African nations," a discourse on a long list of disasters affecting African nation-states that include genocide, war, starvation, ruinous economic policies and other horrors.
It's heavy stuff for a man known primarily as an entertainer, but not when you consider that Glover, 62, came to acting relatively late in life.
He has a deep interest in economics, has long championed union and underdog causes, and had a career as a city administrator in California.
In person, Glover comes across more as an academic than a Tinseltown star.
He's leveraging his film experience to make what his production company, Louverture Films, calls works of "historical relevance, social purpose, commercial value and artistic integrity." That includes the award-winning documentary about Hurricane Katrina, "Trouble the Water."
