On Wednesday, Binghamton University students and faculty gathered outside the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development to hear their peers read excerpts from the speeches of civil rights hero Martin Luther King, Jr.
Organized by members of the Educational Opportunities Program (EOP) and the Student Support Services (SSS), “Through the Words of MLK” featured seven different speakers reciting passages from some of Dr. King’s lesser-known speeches to celebrate the depth of his philosophy, and to acknowledge the amount of work that still must be done for the civil rights movement in the United States. The event was part of BU’s inaugural Martin Luther King Jr., Week of Welcome Celebration.
Student speakers from the EOP and SSS were selected by the event’s organizers, according to Josué Quiñones, an EOP academic counselor. Those who were chosen to speak were given selections from Dr. King’s work, ranging from a few paragraphs to multiple pages, depending on which elements of his ideology resonated with them.
Quiñones also noted that organizers had intentionally selected passages from Dr. King’s less famous works to show that he was more than an inspirational speaker, but an extremely relevant and influential thinker.
“We tried to select speeches that weren’t so well-known and then really pull out excerpts that spoke to not only what Dr. King was talking about then, but are still things that apply and ring true today,” Quiñones said.
Reading from Dr. King, David Best, a counselor in the SSS, outlined a key component of the civil rights leader’s philosophy that organizers felt was particularly applicable to current events.
“’There is nothing more dangerous than to build a society with a large segment of people in that society who feel that they have no stake in it; who feel that that have nothing to lose,’” Best quoted from a speech Dr. King originally delivered at Southern Methodist University on March 17, 1966. “’People who have stake in their society protect that society, but when they don’t have it, they unconsciously want to destroy it.’”
Calvin Gantt, the director of the EOP, said he felt that the recitations of the speeches could bring positive energy to the University’s Welcome Week and provide attendees with inspiration as they go further into the year. He read a selection originally heard in Montgomery, Alabama that he felt outlined the idea of history repeating itself, unless action is taken.
“I hope that students understand that there is still a lot of work to be done,” Gantt said. “We’re on the precipice of a new president, and there’s already lots of potential controversy around what that means. But I’m a firm believer that we have more control over our destiny than we give ourselves credit for.”
The event was attended by approximately 30 faculty members and students, with large groups stopping by to listen in as they passed the area.
Robert Edwards, a sophomore majoring in theatre, said he chose to speak so that he could show other students what he referred to as the timeless nature of Dr. King’s words. The passage Edwards chose came from a speech that was originally delivered in Atlanta, Georgia in 1967, which focused on the pride Dr. King hoped African Americans would take in their culture, regardless of the way they were treated.
“I hope that people really got the idea that even though we’ve made great progress in the past, and are continuing to make great progress, we still have a long way to go,” Edwards said. “I hope that people take away that everyone can be a part of it. Everyone can do their little part to make things more welcoming.”