By Angelia McGowan
The “Black is Culturefeast” presented the SoulSpirit Award to actor, producer and humanitarian Danny Glover, who spoke of the importance of being willing to create beauty in the midst of war, the importance of grassroots revolution, and the strength of women’s ability to heal society.
“Glover is one of the most provocative and influential artists of our time with a repertoire that connects cross-generationally,” said Ashara Ekundayo, the event’s founder and artistic director. “His personal and professional career speaks directly to each individual’s power to demand and create positive change, regardless of social status. We were honored to have him join our festival.”
Glover accepted the award on closing night of the week-long festival during the Denver Urban Spectrum Fade2Black awards reception. He was also in Denver to support the “Women of Power” program at the Veterans of Hope Project.
“He has been generous in helping us try to shape a television series on women in our program who do work in this country and overseas,” said Dr. Vincent Harding, the project’s co-founder and co-chair. “We have especially appreciated the way he has carried on the tradition of people like Harry Belafonte, Lena Horne and Paul Robeson in terms of using his prominence to help folks in the local community, in ways to bring about a better society.”
Previous SoulSpirit Awardees include actor Don Cheadle and movie directors, Melvin Van Peebles, Aishah Shahidah Simmons and Carl Seaton. Like many of the honorees before him, Glover’s experience covers a vast, diverse area.
Glover has earned numerous awards and honors for his wide-reaching community activism and philanthropic efforts, with a particular emphasis on advocacy for economic justice, and access to health care and education programs in the United States and Africa. Internationally, Glover has served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program, focusing on issues of poverty, disease, and economic development in Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean. He currently serves as UNICEF Ambassador.
His latest film project, Bamako, directed by Abderrahmane Sissako, exposes the audience to issues in contemporary Africa. The film also highlights the social and political dynamics and injustices of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, and the effect their lending practices have had on developing countries such as Mali.
A multiple NAACP Image Award winner, Glover has been a commanding presence on screen, stage and television for more than 25 years. His acting credits range from Places in the Heart, Witness, The Color Purple, and the Lethal Weapon sequels. He has also appeared in smaller, independent features, some of which he produced. More recently, he completed filming the critically acclaimed feature Dreamgirls directed by Bill Condon, Poor Boy’s Game directed by Clement Virgo and Shooter directed by Antoine Fuqua.
Glover has invested his talents in more personal projects, including award-winning films such as To Sleep With Anger, which he executive produced and for which he won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor, as well as Bopha!, Manderlay, Missing in America, and the film version of Athol Fugard`s play Boesman and Lena. On television, Glover has earned an Image Award, a Cable ACE Award, and Emmy nominations for his performances in Mandela, Lonesome Dove, and the Freedom Song.
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