By Anjali Gahlaut

The Hooks Institute’s “Where Are They Now?” series explores how the institute has shaped the lives and careers of former alumni. The series uncovers valuable experiences, skills, and lessons that former alumni acquired during their time at Hooks.

Flatez Dyson is an alumnus of the Hooks African American Male Initiative (HAAMI) at the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change. HAAMI seeks to enrich the collegiate experience for its members as well as improve graduation rates for African American male undergraduate students at the University of Memphis. Dyson first got involved with HAAMI in 2015 and was a member of the program’s first cohort. He states, “I thought it was a great opportunity to get involved with a program that was greater than myself and be involved with other like-minded individuals.”

During his time with HAAMI, Dyson attended multiple special events where he was able to speak and network with people of various professions. Public speaking is a skill Dyson has integrated into his professional life as a supply chain analyst at Monogram Foods. “Those experiences through HAAMI built up my confidence level in public speaking to where I could speak to individuals at different levels within an organization. At my current job, I report directly to the Chief of Supply Chain, so I have daily conversations with upper management. It [HAAMI] has definitely benefited me and my career in being able to speak boldly and proudly about the things I stand by.”

Hear from Flatez Dyson

In 2016, the Hooks Institute’s annual “Join Hands for Change” gala honored the accomplishments of University of Memphis alumnus Marvin Ellison, who was CEO of JCPenny at the time. As a member of HAAMI, Dyson was able to speak at the gala and have one-on-one conversations with Ellison. Ellison was impressed by HAAMI and invited its members to Dallas, Texas, where they were able to participate in workshops and tour JCPenny’s headquarters. Dyson states, “For me, that trip had a lot of firsts in my career: it was my first time going to Dallas, it was my first time being on a plane, and it was the first time I met someone in a professional role of his caliber that looked like me. That was a very inspirational moment for me.”

HAAMI supports its students towards graduation through academic achievement, career development, and personal development. “HAAMI is a great organization to be a part of if you’re looking to be a part of an organization that really believes in its students, that puts its students first, and really pushes its students to thrive. I feel like it’s very family oriented. The staff and faculty members give you a nudge whenever you need that nudge, but they also give you career advice and parental advice and teach you life lessons. It’s a wonderful program to be a part of.”

About the Author

Anjali Claire Gahlaut graduated from White Station High School in Memphis, Tennessee and is now a rising sophomore and prospective History major at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Anjali spent the summer of 2022 as an intern at Hooks and joined the team to gain a deeper understanding of Memphis’ history and its impact on marginalized groups.

By Anjali Gahlaut

The Hooks Institute’s “Where Are They Now?” series explores how the institute has shaped the lives and careers of former alumni. The series uncovers valuable experiences, skills, and lessons that former alumni acquired during their time at Hooks.  

Sasha Riedisser is a Litigation Associate at the Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) law firm in St. Louis, Missouri. In 2022, she was awarded the Hon. John R. Essner Young Lawyer of the Year Award from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri for her pro bono and community engagement work. Riedisser joined the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change team when she was assigned as a graduate assistant by the University of Memphis’ English department in 2013. Riedisser states, “When I started, I didn’t know what I was going to be doing or working on. It ended up being a really good fit and a really great project, so I definitely got lucky.”

During her time as a graduate assistant, Riedisser primarily worked on Hooks’ “Tent City” project. Riedisser built the website that outlines the struggles and victories of a grassroots movement in Fayette County, Tennessee. The website also covers multiple civil rights events that took place in Fayette County between 1959 and 1970.

Through Riedisser’s research on Tent City, she learned the importance of listening rather than assuming when identifying the needs of those seeking help. “The people who needed help [in Tent City] were directing the movement, saying ‘these are the resources we need, these are the services we need, and these are the rights we need,’ so I think it’s really important as a lawyer to stop and say, ‘what is the need?’. I learned to ask the people who have the need what they need, and to not assume that I know.” Fayette County is often overlooked when addressing civil rights in the United States. Therefore, the majority of research conducted by Riedisser required extracting information directly from the source through primary documents. “I really needed to dive deep into source material like reading newspapers or going through old letters. It was an experience that I’d never had before—going through a large amount of documents and analyzing them and figuring out what the story is and what happened,” Riedisser explains. As a lawyer, analyzing and piecing together large quantities of documents is a practical skill for Riedisser. “A lot of litigation is getting a large set of documents on your client and figuring out what the story is and what happened. It’s been really helpful to have that background of going back to the source and building your narrative.”

Hear from Sasha Riedisser

Riedisser’s experience at Hooks and working on the Tent City project has expanded her view of not only the Civil Rights Movement, but the world as a whole. She explains, “…as a person of privilege, it’s my job to seek out and figure out what other people go through and what other people’s experiences are. I think that working at Hooks and the experience I had working with the Fayette County project really helped me realize faults in my own thinking and see the world through in a more accurate light”.

About the Author

Anjali Claire Gahlaut graduated from White Station High School in Memphis, Tennessee and is now a rising sophomore and prospective History major at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Anjali spent the summer of 2022 as an intern at Hooks and joined the team to gain a deeper understanding of Memphis’ history and its impact on marginalized groups.

By Anjali Gahlaut

The Hooks Institute’s “Where Are They Now?” series explores how the institute has shaped the lives and careers of former alumni. The series uncovers valuable experiences, skills, and lessons that former alumni acquired during their time at Hooks.

Dr. Rebekkah Mulholland is a former graduate assistant at the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change. Currently, Mulholland is an Assistant Professor of History at California State University at Sacramento, where Mullholland makes a conscious effort to incorporate Memphis history into their curriculum. Muholland states, “Memphis is a part of our conversation when we should talk about the Civil Rights Movement or any aspect of American history because it’s one of those urban cultural centers that’s often overlooked.”

Mulholland first connected with the Hooks Institute while serving as president of the University of Memphis’ Graduate Association for African American History (GAAAH) in 2015.The student organization was searching for financial supporters for their annual international conference. Mulholland states, “My conversation with the Hooks Institute was really good, and they were really interested in the conference we were putting on that year and they were big supporters. So, from that moment on, every year Hooks would be one of our financial supporters and they would come out and attend our panels.” Mulholland continued working with Hooks exclusively through GAAAH until they were made aware of an opportunity to become a graduate assistant. In deciding whether to apply, Mulholland explains, “it was a no-brainer that I wanted to continue that relationship in a different capacity. In 2019, I became the graduate assistant there where I continued to build our relationship”.

During their time as a graduate assistant, one project Mulholland worked on was Hooks’ “Stories to Inspire Change” series on YouTube. Through this series, Muholland got to write and produce short videos detailing various historical figures whose efforts created a more just society. The format of Hooks’ “Stories to Inspire Change” series serves as a blueprint for Mulholland’s students, whose upcoming project is to make a similar short film on a Civil Rights Movement topic. “I mean, they grew up in the age of social media, so any time they can turn the cameras on themselves and put it up on Tik Tok is amazing…I’m going to send their films to our Sacramento History Museum because they want to build their social media presence.” Emphasizing social media and taking the time to build a platform also provides easy access to family, friends, and other community members. Mulholland emphasizes the importance of bridging the gap between the curriculum and the community—something they learned from their time at Hooks.

“One thing I love about Hooks is that they never say they’re giving a voice to the voiceless. They actually go to the community, or they bring the community to the campus, and they listen to them. That’s so important and I think it’s just a wonderful thing to be a part of. I’m so happy I got that opportunity.” Mulholland continues this in California by continuously working on projects in the community as well as bringing community members to campus and introducing them tot he campus’ community. Mulholland elaborates, “I also make sure that we’re taking our students out to the communities— a lot of which they’ve grown up in. They learn that they grew up around a lot of these stories and that these stories are in their families too. That’s one thing Hooks really taught me and one thing that I’ve taken away and I truly appreciate.”

About the Author

Anjali Claire Gahlaut graduated from White Station High School in Memphis, Tennessee and is now a rising sophomore and prospective History major at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Anjali spent the summer 2022 as an intern at Hooks and joined the team to gain a deeper understanding of Memphis’ history and its impact on marginalized groups.