Ńż¼§Ö±²„ State University will hold its 13th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on Thursday, Jan. 22, at 4 p.m. in the Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Student Center Ballroom. Julian Bond, a leader of the civil rights movement, will serve as keynote speaker at the event. Bondās keynote address is titled āCrossing the Color Line: From Rhythm 'n Blues to Rock 'n Rollā and is free to attend, but a ticket is required. Visit www.kent.edu/diversity to download a free ticket. Prior to the event, there will be a memorial march from Ritchie Hall to the Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Student Center Ballroom beginning at 3:15 p.m.
āWe are honored to have Julian Bond as our keynote speaker this year,ā said Alfreda Brown, Ed.D., Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Stateās vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion. āHis speech will be relevant in light of many current regional and national headlines that have gained attention across the United States over the past several weeks. Mr. Bondās experience will take us back to a time of nonviolent protests and engaged activism during a period of unrest in our nationās history, and specifically what he did as a leader of students on college campuses in the 1960s. The timing of Mr. Bondās arrival at Ńż¼§Ö±²„ State is perfectly aligned as an opportunity to learn new perspectives on age-old challenges.ā
Bond, who narrated the May 4 Walking Tour documentary for the guided tour stations at Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Stateās May 4 memorial site, is a Distinguished Visiting Professor at American University in Washington, D.C., and a professor emeritus in the history department at the University of Virginia. He has been at the forefront of civil rights activism for several decades. He helped to form the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee as a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta. In 1998, he was elected board chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and he currently serves as its chairman emeritus. He also helped found the Southern Poverty Law Center and served as its president from 1971 to 1979. Bond was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives, serving from 1965 to 1975. He also served six terms in the Georgia Senate, from 1975-1986. In 1968, Bond led a challenge delegation from Georgia to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and was the first African-American nominated as vice president of the United States. He withdrew his name from the ballot because he was too young to serve.
Bond has published A Time To Speak, A Time To Act, a collection of his essays, as well as Black Candidates Southern Campaign Experiences. His poems and articles also have appeared in several magazines and newspapers, and he has received 25 honorary degrees.
Following Bondās keynote address, preschool children from Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Stateās Child Development Center will present him with their art project called The Skin Iām In. The art project, created with assistance from three Ńż¼§Ö±²„ State students, represents the childrenās multicultural diversity and their different skin colors that combine to make a beautiful piece of art. Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Stateās Diversity Trailblazer Award also will be presented at the commemorative event in the ballroom.
The "Just" for a Day service event on Monday, Jan. 19, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. will kick off Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Stateās weeklong series of events commemorating the life and influence of Martin Luther King Jr. "Just" for a Day, which is sponsored by Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Stateās Office of Experiential Education and Civic Engagement and the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, allows members of the university community to participate in community service to a variety of local nonprofit organizations. Register for the event here.
Other commemorative events include āRace in America," the first topic to be discussed as part of the new University Dialogue Series, on Jan. 22 from 1:30-3:15 p.m. at Ritchie Hallās African Community Theatre (limited seating is available), which will be followed by the silent memorial march that precedes Bondās keynote address; the May 4 Visitors Center also will be open on Jan. 22. A Cultural Extravaganza will take place on Jan. 23 from 6-8 p.m. at the Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Student Center Kiva; the Game of Life, an interactive inequality simulation, will take place Jan. 28 from 4:30-7 p.m. in the Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Student Center Ballroom; and Soup & Substance, which will feature an interfaith panel discussing peace and service to others, will take place on Jan. 28 from noon-1:30 p.m. at the Student Multicultural Center, located on the second floor of the Ńż¼§Ö±²„ Student Center.
A is required to attend Bondās keynote address on Jan. 22, which is open to the public. All other commemorative events are also free and open to the public.
For more information about these and other commemorative events at Ńż¼§Ö±²„ State, visit www.kent.edu/diversity or call 330-672-8563.
# # #
Media Contacts:
Eric Mansfield, emansfie@kent.edu, 330-672-2797
Emily Vincent, evincen2@kent.edu, 330-672-8595