Colgate University’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration commenced with a live jazz performance and keynote speech on Thursday, Jan. 22. Organized by the African, Latin American, Asian American and Native American (ALANA) Cultural Center, the tradition encompasses a series of events to honor the legacy and life of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
Director of the ALANA Cultural Center Esther Rosbrook connected this year’s theme, “Live the Values and Lift Each Other,” to the broader social and institutional climate, emphasizing how important it is to not only honor King but also practice his values.
“‘Live the Values and Lift Each Other’ reflects a recognition that we are navigating a year marked by polarization, fatigue, uncertainty and real strain on individuals and institutions alike,” Rosbrook said. “In that context, Dr. King’s legacy calls us not just to commemorate, but to practice [and] to move from stated values to lived ones.”
Although the events are largely educational, they also emphasize that simply thinking about social justice is not enough. The MLK Celebration urges the community to engage critically with hard questions and translate those ideas into concrete action.
“What does it look like to live our values when it’s difficult?” Rosbrook said. “Where do we need more learning, more care or more courage? How do we lift one another, across differences, across roles, across belief systems, without requiring uniformity?”
Over the course of 10 days, ALANA invites the community to take part in a variety of unique events. Colgate ties the disparate events together by shared community needs and values: religious identity, mutual respect, democratic engagement, tangible action and community partnership. For instance, the Death Café held on Friday, Jan. 30, creates a space for grief, vulnerability and thoughtful exercises that foster values essential for social justice work.
Sophomore Phoenix Phoenix stressed the importance of learning about the history of Black social justice in the United States.
“I didn’t learn about a lot of these things in school,” Phoenix said. “[MLK Week] is an opportunity to practice activist skills in the moment. Experiencing these events exposes the lack of antiracist pedagogy in our schools, or teaching tolerance and how to interact with people and histories that aren’t your own.”
Sophomore Maximilian Moralishvili described his excitement to learn more about Black history and activism at the Social Justice Summit.
“I haven’t gone to any MLK Week events before, so I’m excited to share my feelings about equal opportunity on campus and learn how to become a better activist myself,” Moralishvili said.
The organizers of MLK Week hope students take in the content of the events and walk away thinking differently about how they live, treat and care for others.
“Together, [the programs] form a coherent ecosystem of learning – one that recognizes people bring their full selves to this work: their beliefs, their losses, their hopes and their responsibilities,” Rosbrook said.
