MLK Day 2008 Takes Place Today
January 18, 2008
Sekhar (l) and Serena (r), both seniors, with Frank H. Wu, keynote speaker at MLK Day 2008
Exeter students are honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. today with a full day of activities, presentations and performances. The program, entitled "Who are we? Who are you? Who am I?" was planned and developed by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day 2008 Committee. "The diversity of the program this year will definitely be one of the highlights," says Ronke, a senior and one of 13 students on the committee. "The workshops range from everything from hip-hop to Hurricane Katrina to a civil rights activist."
The day started with a keynote address by Frank H. Wu, Dean and Professor of Law at Wayne State University Law School, and author of Yellow: Race in America Beyond Black and White. Wu's speech, entitled "The Changing Face of Our Nation: A New Paradigm for Civil Rights," was based on his belief that "by 2050 or so, we as a nation will cease to have a single, identifiable racial majority." He discussed how the visible symptoms of bigotry have changed, citing explicit examples from his own life. He concluded his talk by reinforcing the need to continue to battle the "isms" of our society. "Diversity is a process, not a finished product," he said. "Martin Luther King, Jr. left us with a process – a process that has not ended and should never end."
After the keynote address, Exeter students attend morning and afternoon sessions of their choice, including:
"You Don't Know Me Until You Know Me," a one-person show performed by Michael Fowlin. In this show, Fowlin plays nine characters, with themes touching on race, discrimination, violence prevention, personal identity, gender equity and homophobia.
"Post-Katrina New Orleans: More than Picking Up the Pieces" exhibits photographs by Jess Raimondi taken over three years in devastated New Orleans.
Students will also have a chance to view and discuss carefully selected sections of Spike Lee's film, "When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts," which chronicles Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath.
"The Language of Race" is an open discussion led by Kim McLarin '82, author and host of WGBH's "Basic Black." McLarin will focus on the way words we use when talking about race influence how we think about racial issues.
In "Who Stole the Soul? The Crisis Within the Hip-Hop Nation and the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King," Cheo Hodari Coker, author of Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of the Notorious B.I.G., discusses the disconnect between the hip-hop generation and the Civil Rights movement that preceded it.
"Playland," by Athol Fugard, stars Dean Russell Weatherspoon and Robert Richards, theater instructor, in this play set in rural South Africa on New Year's Eve 1989.
In "Race, Class and the Power of Privilege," Karen Maxwell discusses the experience of racial identity.
"Ella Baker and the Civil Rights Movement: A Legacy of Empowerment and Feminism" presents this unsung heroine of the Civil Rights movement. Led by Kwasi Boadi and Tiffany Trotter, both instructors of history.
Tonight, Exeter students will perform their own creative works. "Listen … A Student Celebration of the Life and Ideals of Martin Luther King, Jr." includes performances by the West African Drumming Ensemble, Glee Club, Concert Choir, In Essence (female rhythm and blues singers), Precision (step dancers), Dance Company and classes, PEADQUACS (coed a cappella singers), ABS (belly dancers), Outkast (male step and hip-hop dancers) and Sans Hommes (female folk and popular music performers).
Each year, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Committee – composed of students, faculty and staff – develop a theme and program. ChiChi, a senior on the committee, hopes that today's program will encourage Exonians to "realize we are still working to open people's minds to the changes that are occurring in our world as well as letting people know that we still have a long way to go." She adds: "We tried to create a theme that would include everyone. We wanted to provide a sense of diversity as well as unity, which is part of MLK's dream."
For Ronke, working on the committee gave her a welcome chance to interact with faculty and staff outside of the classroom. "It was more than just talking to a teacher out of class, it was like we were actually working towards one common goal/belief," she explains.
