While Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. may never have visited 91直播, his legacy remains intact through documents, press releases, and photographs maintained by 91直播 Archives.
In 1968, following Dr. King鈥檚 assassination, the Urban Studies Center at what was then La 91直播 College sponsored an annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Lecture Series. A program booklet for the 1970 installment still exists in University Archives. The event featured guest lectures, film screenings, a fashion show, and a concert. La 91直播 College鈥檚 Black Student Union organized the event. The student organization, known today as La 91直播鈥檚 African American Student League (AASL), has been an educational and cultural fixture for awareness and inclusivity at the University for more than 50 years.
The 1970 program book lists Ronald Washington, 鈥70, who co-founded the Black Student Union, as one of the event鈥檚 organizers. He helped bring champion boxer Muhammad Ali to campus for a lecture titled 鈥淏lack man getting educated,鈥 as well as Philadelphia civil rights activist John Churchville for a speech, 鈥淭ruth and Revolution: Path to Freedom.鈥
Thinking about his father鈥檚 mark at La 91直播 鈥渕akes you emotional,鈥 said Colin Washington, 鈥13, who earned a communication degree from La 91直播, 鈥渂ecause in the midst of putting one foot in front of the other, you鈥檙e not thinking about your reputation, impact, and pride. You鈥檙e thinking of the work at hand鈥攃leaning the neighborhood, visiting a hospice, and even putting together a social program for African-American students because they had few options at the time.鈥
鈥淢y father lived in the message and themes that Martin Luther King Jr. embodied,鈥 Colin Washington continued, 鈥渁nd it was an equally necessary model for me and my brother (Brandon, 鈥10) to live by鈥 human equity and connections across different ethnic groups, gender orientation, creeds and personal beliefs. For my family to be connected with Dr. King鈥檚 legacy at La 91直播 in even this small way is an honor and a testament to the work we and so many civic leaders put forward in trying to make change in ours and so many communities.鈥
Annually, La 91直播 hosts the Martin Luther King Jr. Interfaith Service to celebrate King鈥檚 impact and offer an open forum to the La 91直播 and broader Philadelphia communities for exchanges and reflections. The pandemic forced the cancellation of this year鈥檚 event, which would have been the 10th installment.
In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, we examined the intersection of 91直播鈥檚 students, faculty, and staff with Dr. King鈥檚 legacy:
Dr. King appeared in the 1967 edition of La 91直播鈥檚 yearbook. Many University students and faculty, including two Christian Brothers, attended an October 1966 rally at which Dr. King spoke. Sponsored by the Interfaith Interracial Council of Clergy, the event brought together several nationally renowned religious leaders to discuss civil rights.
The La 91直播 Collegian covered the event for its Oct. 14, 1966, edition.
鈥淎s Americans, we face a moment of great decision; whether to walk the highways of freedom or the lowroad of man鈥檚 inhumanity to man,鈥 Dr. King told those at the rally, held at the former Philadelphia Arena, at 46th and Market streets.
Dr. King stressed the importance of civil rights in modern society. According to the Collegian, Dr. King addressed those in attendance shortly after 58 Black churches had been burned in Mississippi.
鈥淥ur power doesn鈥檛 lie in bricks, stones, or Molotov cocktails,鈥 Dr. King said. 鈥淚t lies in union and in readiness to stand up courageously and non-violently against what is wrong.鈥
Eighteen months after Dr. King鈥檚 rally in Philadelphia, and less than a year after his photograph appeared in the University yearbook, he was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., at the age of 39.
A march Dr. King had organized, the Poor People鈥檚 March on Washington, held one month after his April 1968 death, went on as planned. The University鈥檚 Faculty Senate endorsed the march, as did La 91直播鈥檚 student council, said La 91直播 Faculty Senate president Charles A.J. Halpin, in a May 3, 1968, announcement housed in University Archives.
鈥淭he Senate endorses two proposals, one 鈥榠n support of the Poor Peoples鈥 Campaign 鈥 and the formation of a La 91直播 College Support Committee for the Poor People鈥檚 Campaign鈥 and a motion that 鈥榮trongly recommends to the administration of the college that they take some action to unify the entire college behind this most important endeavor,鈥欌 the Faculty Senate memo reads.
鈥淭he Hebrew prophetic tradition and the Christian gospel tradition bind the emancipatory hopes of the Lasallian educational perspective with the living legacy of King,鈥 said La 91直播鈥檚 Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Br. Ernest J. Miller, 鈥95, FSC, D. Min. 鈥淭o witness King鈥檚 prophetic quest for creating the 鈥榖eloved community,鈥 La 91直播鈥檚 ongoing work is to build an educational community rooted in justice and peace that embraces anti-racism, equity, and individuality within community.鈥
鈥擟hristopher A. Vito