Civil Rights Activist Honored for Service

Robert “Bob” P. Moses was honored at the Phillip Brooks House Association’s eighth annual Robert Coles “Call of Service” Lecture and Award Ceremony for what the organization called his lifelong commitment to empower disenfranchised African Americans last Friday.

“The lecture brings a prominent leader in public service to Harvard to inform the community about important social issues as well as to inspire interest in social justice,” said Jose Magana ’15, president of PBHA.

Moses was honored for his extensive work as the leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, an organization formed during the height of the American civil rights movement that planned sit-ins and freedom rides throughout the south. He also promoted minority voter registration as a founding member of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.

“He has captivated through all of the long years, not just by preaching about a beloved community, but by building a beloved community,” said Kenneth E. Reeves ’72, former mayor of Cambridge.

During his address, Moses covered stories that touched upon themes such as the slave trade, emancipation, civil rights and racism.  He emphasized the importance of expanding the reach of political agency.

“I take the preamble to the Constitution very seriously; it does not begin ‘We the President’ or ‘We the Congress’,” said Moses. “It begins with ‘We the people’, and we have spent the last two and a quarter centuries trying to expand the reach of ‘We the people’ to include a wider and more inclusive group of people.”

In keeping with the event’s theme, fellow speakers used Moses’s framework to encourage community action.

“Being liberally educated, knowing what goes on in the world is not about freeing ourselves from the occupations we have to our fellow citizens, but instead to be liberated is to be committed to be part of something larger,” said Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana.

The award itself was created in homage of Dr. Robert Coles ’50,  professor of psychiatry, to honor those who have dedicated themselves to serving others.

“Dr. Coles has been a guide, board member, advisor, teacher, and counselor with the PBHA for more than half of the 110 years [of its existence],” said Maria J. Dominguez Gray ’94, PBHA's executive director.  “Coles has made a career out of listening to people that nobody bothers to.”

In his closing remarks, Moses commented on what “Call of Service” means to him: “Generosity of spirit assumes the best, not the worst, in humans.”