Martin Luther King Jr. Day is in remembrance of MLK's legacy, focusing on the ongoing civil rights concerns, as well as using nonviolence to create change in society. Otterbein University's Office of Social Justice and Activism, along with other campus offices, has held more intimate events to honor MLK's legacy, such as The MLK Social Justice Series.
The MLK Social Justice Series is a three-part series hosted by local activist Noel Williams. Its purpose is for students to understand their abilities, how to put them to good use in their communities and to understand relational organizing for face-to-face meetings and interactions.
The final event will take place virtually on February 23, 2022 and will be specifically designed to help students understand that MLK's work was not only about relationships, but also about understanding power.
“So many times people will want to advocate an issue but they don’t understand power, so this event is going to help you understand what real power really is,” Williams said.
She believes it is critical to spread MLK's legacy to college students since she has observed most people will celebrate MLK's legacy by doing arts and crafts. In reality, MLK's legacy is about social justice and she wants people to grasp this.
“But more importantly Martin did not do it by himself, Martin just happened to be the face. So, people need to understand there were other people involved, more people involved behind the scenes that played a critical role that helped for Martin to be out front and to be able to articulate,” Williams said.
Due to various changes that have occurred throughout history, James Prysock, the head of Otterbein's Office of Social Justice and Activism, believes it is critical that MLK's legacy is shared at Otterbein. He believes there is always opportunity for improvement, both internally and externally on campus. Internally, Otterbein needs to determine what adjustments we need to make, as well as how we can impact our community.
“It’s carrying that legacy of saying what’s important to me and how I can be a change in that process. So I’m hoping that people walk away from this series with that in mind,” Prysock said.
On February 23rd, from 4 to 5 p.m., The MLK Social Justice Series event will be held virtually and is INST and FYE approved. Williams encourages students to "one, build relationships and two, effectively bring about change in your community."
This is the event’s link:
ID: 344 751 8113
