Eleven leaders in politics and human rights advocacy were honored at the 2017 Ebenezer D. Bassett Humanitarian Awards on Oct. 16 at Central Connecticut State University.

CCSU presents the awards biannually to highlight the legacy of Ebenezer Bassett who, in 1853, became the first African American to attend and graduate from State Normal School (now CCSU). Bassett went on to become a noted educator, a prominent leader in the abolitionist movement, and the nation’s first African American diplomat as the Minister Resident to Haiti.

Humanitarian Award honorees this fall are June Archer ’96; John C. Brittain, Esq.; U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal and his wife, Cynthia; Congresswoman Elizabeth Esty; former Congresswoman Barbara Kennelly; Dr. Peter Rosa ’68; Richard and Clara Ruffin; Consul General Christopher Teal; and Master’s program alumni Roland Stanley Harris (posthumous).