Public Enemy leader to speak at Alumni Hall

To honor Black History Month, the Union Board Lecture Series is bringing Public Enemy leader and co-founder Chuck D to speak at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 21 in Alumni Hall.\nSophomore Nick Hillman, Union Board lectures director, described Chuck D as a "very motivational, powerful speaker." The Chuck D lecture is the first sponsored by the 2001 board.\nHillman said Chuck D has received positive reviews at other lectures, making him a good Black History Month speaker. Union Board president Vaughn Allen, a junior, agreed.\n"We wanted to bring a high-profile speaker for Black History Month," Allen said. "I think he'll fit the bill real well."\nAllen said Chuck D's sometimes controversial political affiliations, including his open support for Napster, were not a factor in the board's decision to ask him to speak.\n"We've brought controversial speakers before. Not being a political organization, we like to think about bringing a speaker who people want to see," Allen said. "(Political controversy is) not a huge concern, but it's taken into consideration."\nChuck D has been one of the most outspoken recording artists in support of Napster and online file sharing. Public Enemy was the first major label band to release an online-only album -- 1999's There's a Poison Goin' On. Chuck D has also given interviews with ABC News and the FOX News channel supporting file sharing.\nNapster was banned for the second time by IU last April. The original filters placed on Napster Feb. 12, 2000 were reinstalled, denying on-campus users access to the program.\nBut Hillman maintains the lecture will concentrate on the importance of Black History Month, not on Napster. \n"It will actually not be about Napster," Hillman said. "The focus will be on race relations in America and the significance of Black History Month."\nAlthough Public Enemy first came onto the scene with 1987's Yo! Bum Rush the Show, it was with 1988's It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold us Back and 1990's Fear of a Black Planet that the group cemented its status as the leader of politically minded, socially conscious hip-hop.\nChuck D has actively lectured since 1989 at more than 500 universities, high schools, organizations and prisons, according to the official Public Enemy Web site. He is now completing his second book, "Anatomy of a Rap Circus Within: The Rise, Fall and Rise of Public Enemy"