Public invited to MLK Day events at Saint Mary’s
The public is invited to join the Saint Mary’s University community in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 20.
The remembrance begins Sunday, Jan. 19, with a 9 p.m. Mass in Saint Thomas More Chapel. Guest musicians will be vocalist and pianist Scott Patterson of Baltimore and vocalist Adia Dobbins of Detroit.
On Monday, Xavier Wilson, a 1998 Saint Mary’s alumnus and assistant director of housing and residence life at Winona State University, will present Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech in the Toner Student Center Dining Room at 12:45 p.m.
Students, faculty and staff are then invited to attend two discussions:
• The Solidarity Council will discuss “Emerging Leaders Among the Millennials: MLK’s Impact on Young Leaders Today” at 3:30 p.m. in the Cardinal Club. Facilitated by leaders of student organizations and Student Senate, Solidarity Council discussions provide space for dialogue on the gifts and challenges of multiculturalism and diversity at Saint Mary’s.
• An academic panel will discuss “MLK Day and the Legacy of Black Leadership: When Commemoration and History Collide” at 4:30 p.m. in the President’s Room. Dr. Erin Mae Clark (English) and Dr. Tycho de Boer (history) will lead a discussion about the ways in which the commemoration of black public figures in the United States tends to serve nationalistic, patriotic, post-racial, and other political agendas and thereby obscure the complexity of history and culture — and the role these people played and play in it.
At 7 p.m. Monday, the public is invited to attend an ecumenical prayer service, hosted by the Office of Campus Ministry, in the Toner Student Center Lounge. A reception is planned for 7:45 p.m. in the lobby of the Performance Center.
Everyone is invited to a “Freedom Day Concert” at 8:15 p.m. in Figliulo Recital Hall, also located in the Performance Center. Guest musicians Patterson and Dobbins will again perform. This event is hosted by the Office of Student Life.
