by Elise Goitia '18

Knox College celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day with an annual convocation featuring music, speeches, and poetry that not only spoke of King's great achievements, but also called for action.

Convocation opened with the Knox College Choir and Friends singing Woke Up This Mornin', directed by professor of music Laura Lane. President of Knox College Teresa Amott then took the podium, welcoming students, prospective students, faculty, and the Galesburg community. Amott described the great significance of Dr. King's actions through the Civil Rights Movement and the importance of action today.

Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College Laura Behling continued the theme, saying, "All of us born too late after Dr. Martin Luther King's Civil Rights Movement were born in time for our own. The great glory of a world of democracy is waiting for us to achieve it."

This year's Convocation speeches were both a remembrance of the sacrifices King made and a universal call to become part of a non-partisan movement toward peace in the face of racism, sexism, homophobia, and bigotry.

"The Civil Rights movement isn't about voting for the right president," said Burkhardt Distinguished Associate Professor of History Konrad Hamilton, whose speech was titled "A Path Forward During Dark Times: Reflections on the Legacy of Martin Luther King Jr."

"It's about the sustained collective act of people doing the right thing. Whether we take to the streets or take to Twitter, we should exercise agape, the highest form of love, toward equal rights."

"I believe most Americans strive to live by what Dr. King stood for: fairness, justice, compassion in dealing with others," he added. "Actions speak louder than words, however you voted. What actions are you going to take to express who you really are?"

Visiting professor of Africana studies Kwame Zulu Shabazz gave a speech titled "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Black Death, and the Myth of the Black Superhero." He described crimes against the black community during the fight for equal rights and what must be done to end the violence.

"The structures of our democracy, the police, the education system—this is where our struggle to change will be," he commented.

"Justice is something that we need to work towards, but many of us have not known," Shabazz added. "You have to do real work to change things the way they are today. Create transformative change, not just for us, but for the world."

Convocation ended with the reading of poems by Parker Adams '17 and Maria Francesca Downs '19. Adams read an original work and a poem by Danez Smith. Downs read works by T.J. Jarrett and Mahogany Browne.