- Student Life & Services
- Intercultural Affairs
- MLK Jr Celebration
MLK Jr. Celebration
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
The Unity March has been rescheduled for Saturday, 2/5/22 at 12:00 pm at the fountain.
1-16-2022 - NOTICE:
The March scheduled for Monday, January 17th, 2022 has been postponed due to inclement weather. Check back later in the week for the rescheduled date and time.
The WCU community gathers annually to celebrate and commemorate the life and legacy
of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. Our focus during the week long
celebration is the concept of community. Dr. King once said, 'We know that to bring
justice, love, and friendship, we must build strong communities that foster these
things.' We encourage you to consider these words and your role in building a strong
community here at WCU and beyond.
The theme for the 2022 celebration is 'Until justice rolls down like water', inspired from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during his speech at the march on Washington
on August 28, 1963. The original quote is from Amos 5:24.
I Have A Dream Speech - August 28, 1963
2022 Keynote Speaker
Dr. Charisse Burden-Stelly is the 2021-2022 Visiting Scholar in the Race and Capitalism Project at the University of Chicago and an Assistant Professor of Africana Studies and Political Science at Carleton College. A scholar of critical Black studies, political theory, and intellectual history, she is the co-author, with Gerald Horne, of W.E.B. Du Bois: A Life in American History. Burden-Stelly is finishing a book manuscript titled Black Scare/Red Scare to be published with University of Chicago Press. She is also the co-editor of three forthcoming volumes: Organize, Fight, Win: Three Decades of Black Communist Women’s Political Writings with Jodi Dean; Reproducing Domination: On the Caribbean Postcolonial State with Aaron Kamugisha; and W.E.B. Du Bois at 150: Reflections on the Life of a Scholar-Provocateur with Randall Westbrook. Her published work appears in journals including Small Axe, Souls, Du Bois Review, Socialism & Democracy, International Journal of Africana Studies, Journal of Intersectionality, and the CLR James Journal. Her public scholarship can be found in venues including Monthly Review, Boston Review, Black Perspectives, and Black Agenda Report. Additionally, she is the co-host, with Dr. Layla Brown, of “The Last Dope Intellectual” podcast.
Schedule of Events
Monday, January 17, 2022 - POSTPONED DUE TO WEATHER
MLK Jr. Unity March
Host: Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
10:00 am - Poster Making , UC Cardinal Room
11:00 am - Catafount
Service Opportunity
Host: Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning
TBD various times and locations
Registration
Tuesday, January 18, 2022
Dr. Dwayne Tutt
Dr. Tutt Talk - The Economics of Dr. King and the 1965 Voter Rights Act
Host: College of Business
5:00 pm
UC Multipurpose Room
On January 6, 2021 the world witnessed an assault on the United States Capital and Democracy. The assault was based upon the view by some Americans that other Americans had perverted and somehow caused an inaccurate voting outcome, because their candidate lost the presidential election. During this assault, Americans lost their lives. Since the assault, many states have enacted new voting policies which will restrict voting rights for some Americans.
In the 1960s, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lead a movement in the United States of America to enforce fair voting rights for all people. During that movement, people lost their lives for the right to "cast a vote." Finally, in 1965 The Voting Rights Act was signed into Federal Law.
This talk will explore the economic thoughts of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the economics of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. We will explore the economic power of voting in a democracy and its relationship to capitalism.
Wednesday, January 19, 2022
Keynote Workshop - Martin Luther King and W.E.B. Du Bois against U.S. imperialism.
Host: Intercultural Affairs
10:00 am
UC Multipurpose Room
Presentation of Student Leadership Awards &
Keynote Address - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Tradition of Radical Blackness
Host: Intercultural Affairs
7:00 pm
Bardo Performing Arts Center
Reception following in the Bardo Star Atrium with light refreshments and music by the Bluejazz band.
Thursday, January 20, 2022
Dr. Walton Workshop - Strategies for Classroom Diversity and Inclusion
Host: Global Black Studies
5:30 pm
UC Multipurpose Room
This workshop is designed for faculty and future educators who are seeking simple, yet new and innovative ways to enhance diversity and inclusion in their classrooms. This workshop will be useful for all disciplines.
Friday, January 21, 2022
Zeke Jennette
Zeke Jennette - Vernissage
Host: Intercultural Affairs
2:30 - 4:00 pm
ICA Gallery, UC 227
Zeke won the Chancellor's Award at the 53rd Annual Juried Undergraduate Exhibition for his painting, Oshun. Intercultural Affairs will show an exhibition of Zeke's work in their gallery during January and host a meet and greet vernissage with Zeke on the 21st. Light refreshments will be served.
About the artist:
"I always had a passion for art. I grew up as a quiet kid in Durham, NC, and I used drawing to express myself in ways that far surpassed the confines of words. This attraction for sketching, which I have been doing since the age of 5, eventually turned into a love for painting. I especially enjoyed painting abstract and portraiture pieces. As a biology major and pre-veterinary student, I use painting as an escape from the stressful realities of academia. During my visits to galleries and exhibitions, I noticed a lack of pieces expressing the beauty of people of color. Therefore, I decide to predominantly include people of color, like myself, into the subject matter of my paintings. I want young artists who look like me to be able to see their skin being celebrated on canvases and in museums, and I want underrepresented demographics to know that they, too, are works of divine artistic creation."