image0 1
Office of Communications

Office of Communications

Bakari Sellers to speak at Denmark Tech Black History Program

Denmark Technical College has announced Bakari Sellers, CNN political commentator and former member of the South Carolina State House of Representatives, as the 2023 Black History Month program speaker.

“We are elated to announce Bakari Sellers as our 2023 Black History Month program speaker,” said Willie L. Todd Jr., Ph.D., president and CEO of Denmark Technical College. “Sellers is a scholar, activist and revered media personality with deep roots in our service area. There’s no doubt that his message will be profoundly impactful to our students.”   

The Black History Month program is the centerpiece to a month-long celebration including cultural events, community service projects and a block party. This year’s Black History Month theme is “Engage. Educate. Empower. The Power of Black Resistance”, based on DTC’s mission statement and the theme for the national Black History Month celebration. 

Bakari Sellers was born into an activist family. His father, civil rights leader Cleveland Sellers, instilled core values in him to continue in the tireless commitment to service. 

In 2005 Sellers earned a bachelor’s degree in African American Studies from Morehouse College. He continued his education at the University of South Carolina School of Law in 2008, earning a juris doctor. He currently practices law with the Strom Law Firm in Columbia, SC where he heads the firm’s strategic communication and public affairs team and has recently added diversity, equity and inclusion consulting to the list of services offered. 

Sellers made history in the 2006 South Carolina state legislature as the youngest African American elected official in the nation, at the age of 22. In 2008 he served on President Obama’s South Carolina steering committee. His ability to “reach across the aisle to get things done” has led to numerous achievements including being named TIME Magazine’s 40 Under 40, “The Root 100” list of the nation’s most influential African Americans in 2015 and HBCU Top 30 Under 30 in July 2014. 

Bakari Sellers recently released his new children’s book Who Are Your People?, inspired by his 3-year-old twins, to teach young Black readers about their history and authored a New York Times Best Seller, My Vanishing Country, described as part memoir, part historical and cultural analysis illustrating the lives of America’s forgotten black working-class men and women. He recently expanded his audience with the Bakari Sellers Podcast, a twice-a-week show that is part of the Ringer Podcast Network. His podcasts discuss a variety of topics including politics, race, sports, media and the presidential campaign. 

Sellers is married to Dr. Ellen Rucker-Sellers and is the father to twins Sadie and Stokely.

The annual Black History Month program takes place on the Denmark Technical College campus at 10:00 a.m. on February 22, in the William L. McDuffie Student Life Center and is open to the public.

Share this post