Shriver Center Honors Jeffrey Sachs and Morgan Spurlock at Awards Ceremony

December 5, 2005

Shriver Center Honors Jeffrey Sachs and Morgan Spurlock at Awards Ceremony:

The State of Poverty: America's Undeclared Disaster Area

(Chicago)--When Hurricane Katrina swept through Louisiana and Mississippi late last
August and early September, it wasn't just those two states that Katrina brought to the
nation's attention. The Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law hopes to draw
attention to another state that many in the United States saw for the first time--the
nation's 51st state, the "State of Poverty."

The Shriver Center's annual awards dinner on December 1 in Chicago will address the
devastating effects of poverty in America. "From the eye of the storm, we at the Shriver
Center know the possibilities of moving from the state of poverty to the state of
prosperity," says Rita McLennon, the Shriver Center's executive director.

The economist Jeffrey Sachs, author of The End of Poverty, is expected to expound on
the state of poverty in America in a keynote address. Professor Sachs, who will receive
the Sargent Shriver Award for Equal Justice, is being honored for distinguished
achievement in promoting the alleviation of poverty.

Morgan Spurlock, the documentary filmmaker of Super Size Me fame, will also receive
the Sargent Shriver Award for Equal Justice. He is being honored for distinguished
achievement in raising awareness of the plight of minimum-wage workers in the United
States in his FX television series 30 Days.

Event organizers hope that national attention on poverty will not wane in the aftermath of
the storms and that governmental leaders will be forced to set poverty as a priority on the
national agenda. The Shriver Center is leading a national campaign to end "The State of
Poverty" by advocating laws and proposing model policies to benefit low-income
families across America.

Where: Palmer House Hilton Grand Ballroom, 17 E. Monroe St. Chicago, Illinois
Who: Jeffrey Sachs, author of the "The End of Poverty," will deliver the keynote address
When: Thursday, December 1, 2005
5:30 p.m. Reception
6:00 p.m. Cocktails and Silent Auction
7:00 p.m. Dinner Program and Awards
Contact Rikeesha Cannon, Shriver Center media coordinator,
for more information on the event and interview requests with Jeffrey Sachs or Morgan Spurlock.
Taking Action to End Poverty

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