Service activities, lectures and other special events will honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at Elon the week of Jan. 19. Read this note for full details of the week's schedule.
Elon University will celebrate the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. this winter with a series of events hosted by several departments, offices and programs on campus.
The 2015 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Beloved Community Celebration was organized by the Center for Race, Ethnicity & Diversity Education, Elon Teaching Fellows, the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement, the Black Cultural Society, the National Panhellenic Council, DEEP, the Office of Student Activities and the Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life.
Anyone with questions about the following events is encouraged to contact Jamie Butler, assistant director of the Center for Race, Ethnicity & Diversity Education, at 336-278-7243.
2015 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Beloved Community Celebration
Monday, January 19
A Day “On!” – Beloved Community Day of Service
8:30 a.m., Greensboro, N.C.
Join the Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement for Elon’s annual celebration of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. Students can sign up to travel to Greensboro, N.C., to work with the Volunteer Center of Greensboro at the Four Seasons Mall. Spaces are limited and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. To sign-up, email cfullwood@elon.edu by Friday, Jan. 9.
Tuesday, January 20
Beloved Community College Coffee
12 p.m., Moseley Center
Elon University’s Office of Student Activities sponsors a special College Coffee featuring a special performance by the African American Dance Ensemble of Durham, N.C. The campus community is invited to attend and commemorate the life and legacy of one of the world’s most inspiring human rights leaders.
Tuesday, January 20
MLK Movie Night: “Dear White People”
6:30 p.m., LaRose Digital Theatre of the Koury Business Center
Winner of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival’s Special Jury Award for Breakthrough Talent, Dear White People is provocative satire of race relations in the age of Obama. The film follows students and university administrators as they navigate racial politics and campus life at a fictional predominantly white college, Winchester University. The Center for Race, Ethnicity & Diversity Education and Residence Life invites students to attend this screening followed by a discussion. Email Carla Fullwood at cfullwood@elon.edu for more information.
Wednesday, January 21
MLK Speaker Series: Mei-Ling Hopgood
6 p.m., Whitley Auditorium
Mei-Ling Hopgood is author of “How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm” and “Lucky Girl” and a freelance journalist who has written for various publications, ranging from the National Geographic Traveler and Marie Claire Magazine to the Miami Herald and the Boston Globe. She has worked as a reporter with the Detroit Free Press, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and in the Cox Newspapers Washington bureau.
A recipient of the National Headliner Best in Show, she has received several national and international journalism awards. She is an associate professor at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. A former president of the Asian American Journalism Association, Hopgood will speak on the complexity of cultural identity.
Thursday, January 22
MLK Multifaith Service
12 p.m., Sacred Space of the Numen Lumen Pavilion
Much of MLK’s work was rooted in his role as a religious leader. While he was a Christian minister, he also greatly influenced and was influenced by leaders of many other faith traditions. Students and staff connected to Truitt Center for Religious and Spiritual Life from many different traditions will offer a service in the spirit of MLK and his life, passion and principles.
Thursday, January 22
Elon Law Martin Luther King Jr. Forum
5:30 p.m., Elon University School of Law (Downtown Greensboro)
Elon Law’s Martin Luther King, Jr. forum will feature the insights of Elon Law students, professors and alumni, as well as special guests from the legal community, about the legal impacts, insights and implications of King’s work and vision.
Thursday, January 22
MLK Movie and Dialogue: “Selma”
After 4:30 p.m., Carousel Cinemas at Alamance Crossing; sign-ups begin January 12
Selma is the story of a movement. The film chronicles the tumultuous three-month period in 1965, when King led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement. Transportation and movie ticket provided for the first 20 students who sign up at The Center for Race, Ethnicity & Diversity Education (Moseley 221) beginning January 12. Email Carla Fullwood atcfullwood@elon.edu for more information.
Friday, January 23
Elon University MLK Commemorative Luncheon
12-1:30 p.m., Lakeside Meeting Rooms
The MLK Commemorative Luncheon will celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as well as the winners of Elon’s annual MLK Humanitarian Essay Contest for middle school students. Space is very limited. If you would like to attend, please email Jamie Butler at jbutler18@elon.edu by Wednesday, January 14.
Events held previously in January included the following:
Thursday, January 8
MLK Speaker Series: Eli Clare
12-1:15 p.m. – Lunch and Learn: “Moving Beyond Pity & Inspiration: Disability as a Social Justice Issue,” Linder 206 (registration required through OnTrack)
2-3:30 p.m. – Afternoon Session: “At the Intersection of Queerness and Disability,” Belk Pavilion 208
6-8 p.m. – Evening dinner and workshop: “Digging Deep: Thinking about Privilege,” Alamance 101 (registration required through OnTrack)
Eli Clare is a writer, speaker, activist, and teacher addressing disability, gender, race, class and sexuality in his work. He has cerebral palsy and identifies as genderqueer and as a trans man. Clare has a bachelor’s degree in women’s studies from Mill College and a M.F.A. from Goddard College.
Monday, January 12
MLK Speaker Series: Robert Jensen
12-1:15 p.m. – Lunch and Learn: “Beyond Multiculturalism,” Lindner 206 (registration required through OnTrack)
2-3:30 p.m. – Afternoon Session: “We Are All Apocalyptic now: Moral Responsibilities in Crisis Times,” Belk Pavilion 208
7-9 p.m. – Evening dinner and workshop: “Addressing Institutional Racism,” Alamance 101 (registration required through OnTrack)
Robert Jensen is a professor in the School of Journalism at the University of Texas and the author of several books. In his writing and teaching, Jensen draws on a variety of critical approaches to media and power and has addressed questions of race through a critique of white privilege and institutionalized racism.
Thursday, January 15
MLK Speaker Series: Kip Fulbeck
“Race, Sex, and Tattoos”
6 p.m., McCrary Theatre
Kip Fulbeck is an artist, spoken word performer, author and filmmaker exploring multiracial identity. Part poet, part comedian and part pop culture critic, Fulbeck addresses diversity as a conversation about race, but also works with audiences to tackle the larger questions of who we are as individuals, how we define ourselves and how we engage with those around us. Fulbeck teaches art at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and has written several books, including, Part Asian, 100% Hapa and Mixed: Portraits of Multiracial Kids.