"One of America’s most important public intellectuals" as described by a colleague, Cornel West, professor of Afro-American Studies and the philosophy of religion at Harvard University, will lecture at DePaul University Oct. 14 at St. Vincent’s Church, 1010 W. Webster Ave., at 7:30 p.m.

West will deliver the second annual Frederick Douglass Distinguished Lecture organized by the university’s Center for Culture and History of Black Diaspora. He will address the topic of "Race, Justice and Freedom in the 21^st Century."

West, who joined the faculty of Harvard in 1994, was recently appointed university professor, a title held by only 14 of the university’s 2,200 faculty members.

As an undergraduate student, West graduated magna cum laude from Harvard in three years and was cited by one professor as "one of the most intellectually aggressive and highly cerebral students I have taught in my 30 years here." He went on to Princeton University where he earned a master’s degree in 1975 and a Ph.D. in 1980. West became a professor of religion and director of Afro-American Studies at Princeton in 1987.

West has written 14 books, including "The American Evasion of Philosophy," "Jews and Blacks," "Let the Healing Begin" and "Race Matters," which catapulted him to the public spotlight when it became a national best seller and "Time" and "Newsweek" both ran extensive profiles on him. "The War Against Parents," co-written with Sylvia Ann Hewlett, with whom he co-chairs the National Parenting Association’s Task Force on Parent Empowerment, was published in April 1998. His most recent publication, "The Future of American Progressivism," written with Robert Unger, teaches how the divisions in our society undermine the democratic process.

The Frederick Douglass Distinguished Lecture series was established by DePaul’s Center for Culture and History of Black Diaspora to honor the legacy of a champion of justice and freedom. "It honors a life lived devoted to education, struggle and resistance grounded in moral authority of action," said Sandra Jackson, director of the center. The first lecturer in the series was Barbara A. Sizemore, former dean of the university’s School of Education.

The lecture is free and open to the public. For more information about the Second Annual Frederick Douglass Distinguished Lecture contact the DePaul Center for Culture and History of Black Diaspora, chief sponsor of the event, at 773/325-7510.