The Xavierite
During the week of January 19, Saint Xavier remembered Martin Luther King Junior in a variety of different ways.
Beginning the week with a day off from classes, student organizations continued the remembrance by putting together many events to help the Saint Xavier student body to understand this historic figure. Some of these student organizations include the Mercy Students for Peace and Justice, the Diversity Leadership Council, and the African American Studies Diaspora Club.
Jose Vasquez, Assistant Director of Student Activities and Campus Life, explains that “Martin Luther King Week is one of our annual programs here at Saint Xavier University, which we started planning for in late October.”
Dates needed to be planned, organizations needed to be contacted, and events needed to be produced for this annual program. Vasquez explains that with so many people contributing to the week, there was a variety of different ideas and perspectives which could be seen throughout the many events.
“We got very lucky to have a representative from the different sponsors and student organizations, as well as faculty and staff, because together [they] came out with different ideas,” said Vasquez.
Not only did they plan for MLK Week during the past few months, but for Black History month as well, which is coming up in February and has similar events and activities to MLK Week.
On Tuesday January 20, students came together to watch Martin Luther King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech in the chapel, which was immediately followed with a discussion.
“We had faculty, staff, and students as a part of this program, which has given them the opportunity to learn more about the legacy of Martin Luther King, which not only allowed them to learn, but also to educate, which was one of the intentions of this program,” said Vasquez.
In the discussion that followed the viewing, Vasquez explains that the attendees discussed not only the hardships of King’s time, but also the events that are more current, and their effect on American communities today.
Even those who did not attend the specific MLK Week events had special ways to remember Martin Luther King. Many classes throughout Saint Xavier University remembered King by reading some of his stories or famous literature and the library featured books about this man. Other suggested ways to remember King would be to watch a documentary about him, listen to a song that is in his remembrance, or to discuss him and other important people of history in small groups.
“If a student wasn’t able to attend any of the events, there are other ways to educate themselves about the work that Martin Luther King did. There will be other events throughout the year, not only from the Campus Life office, but from many other sponsors that will talk about the work that he did, and also the work that other people did. The upcoming Black History Month and other events throughout the year are good ways to remember important people of history,” said Vasquez.
Julie Gardner
News Editor