A week of campus-oriented events to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life began yesterday as part of “Let Freedom Ring,” a University initiative organized by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Planning Committee. The committee, which consists of students and administrators, formed in October to plan diverse events around the national holiday on Monday.
The week of events is new to campus this year and will allow discussion and reflection on King’s legacy, according to Assistant Vice President for Communications and committee member Julie Green Bataille.
Committee member Luis Torres (CAS ‘05) said that the planning committee marks a change from previous years, when the Center for Minority Educational Affairs did most of the work for events around the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. This year, the committee has asked campus groups to contribute money or resources to during the events. The committee had a good response, Torres said, with groups like GU Pride, MSA and JSA contributing.
“It’s a community effort and that’s what Dr. King wanted,” Torres said.
Yesterday’s events included a noon prayer service in Gaston Hall, a panel discussion on D.C. voter representation and student reflections on the life of Dr. King in Sellinger Lounge. Other events in the coming week include a commemoration during halftime at the Georgetown’s men’s basketball game against St. John’s on Saturday, a special mass in Dahlgren Chapel on Monday and a performance by the Georgetown Gospel Choir and Chapel Choir with Roberta Flack at the Kennedy Center on Monday.
“The thought was to really have an opportunity to present a wide variety of events that would appeal to different groups of people,” Bataille said.
