Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. lived a truly amazing life and has left a legacy that will continue on for many generations to come. His life and legacy is celebrated in most parts of the country in late January and Millikin is part of this group. This year, to celebrate Dr. King’s life and legacy, the Office of Student Inclusion put on a presentation entitled “Weathering the Storm”. This presentation was held in on January 28^th in Lower RTUC and was divided up into 5 main segments starting with a monologue about Dr. King spoken by Wyatt Burton, Garett Mayberry, Brittany Waldron, and Mary McCormack.

“Who was Martin Luther King Jr.?” is the question asked at the beginning of the monologue “An American clergyman. Father and activist. Husband and humanitarian. Leader of the African-American Civil Rights movement. Member of Alpha Phi Alpha National Fraternity Incorporated. And best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights, using non-violent civil disobedience. King was someone with a dream.” The monologue continued, “But king was not just a dreamer, he was also a doer.” They went on to discuss how Dr. King fought for what he believed in, no matter what the consequences were, he fought for what he saw as right.

After the monologue there was a student performance of the song “Make Them Hear You’ from the 1996 musical “Ragtime” performed by Millikin student Josh Miller with Millikin student Jared Rixstine accompanying him on the piano. After the performance, there was a reflection portion put on by Millikin’s women’s basketball Coach Kerans, Professor Hensley, and Millikin Students McKenzie Sauer and Anthony Sims. During these reflections, the presenters discussed a variety of topics about struggles such as addiction, discrimination, this generation’s effect on future generations as well as doing what is right. These presenters told these stories using their real life examples and challenges that they have encountered and how they went about solving them.

At the beginning of the presentation, the students were handed a notecard and given a chance to write down their own challenges or struggles in their own lives and after the presentations, the floor was opened up to students who wished to discuss what they had written on the card in an open forum type of environment. Some of the students who choose to discuss what they had written down had a variety of topics that they discussed. Some of the students who spoke talked about times when they have struggled with challenges in their own lives and how they were able to overcome their challenges. Other students talked about how we can honor Dr. King’s legacy and continue on the mission for equal rights that he fought for.

The presentation ended with a quote from Dr. King “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy.” According to Molly Berry “This is where the concept for tonight came from, this is where we felt like we could move and have a good discussion.” She also stated that “We have challenges in our lives, we have controversies around us every day.” and went on to ask the student audience “How are you taking a stand and moving through the storm? How are you looking at your neighbor, and your friends, and the people who sit next to you? How are you continuing to support and help one another as we face the challenges and beat the storms? I hope that this quote starts the conversation tonight instead of ending it.” Hopefully this quote will help keep the conversation about Dr. King’s legacy going.