Contributed photo.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is Jan. 19, and the campus community is commemorating King's civil rights legacy with several events during January. All events are free and open to the public.
Volunteers needed
The geographic information systems (GIS) facility is holding a Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service event on Jan. 19 (10 a.m.-noon; 1-3 p.m., 206 Durham). Volunteers will help create crowd-sourced maps of the world to help with disaster relief efforts. All are invited to participate; no experience is required. Lunch is provided. More information, including registration details, is available online.
- Community birthday celebration, Jan. 19 (6-7:30 p.m., Ames Middle School commons, 3915 Mortensen Rd.). Celebrate King's birthday (his actual birthday is Jan. 15) with songs, stories and cake. A program begins at 6:30 p.m.
- Legacy convocation, Jan. 22 (3:30 p.m., Memorial Union, Sun Room). Celebrate King's legacy and learn how his global vision of equality for everyone remains relevant today. James "Jay" Bailey, CEO of Operation Hope, Atlanta, will present the keynote address. The non-profit Operation Hope helps people with home purchases, financial literacy, business startups and entrepreneurship. The Advancing One Community Awards also will be presented.
- Lecture, "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness," Michelle Alexander, Jan. 29 (7 p.m., MU Great Hall). In her new book of the same title, Alexander argues that systemic racial discrimination has resumed since the gains of the Civil Rights movement, causing devastating social consequences. Alexander holds a joint appointment at the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity and the Moritz College of Law at Ohio State University. Previously, she was director of the Civil Rights Clinic at Stanford Law School. She also served as director of the Racial Justice Project at the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, which led a national campaign against racial profiling by law enforcement.
