Events planned to remember King
Published Jan. 27, 2004
A week after the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., MU will hold a week of celebration, "The Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on American Public Policy."
The week will feature panels on varying topics, including police and community relations, education, art and voting, organizer Charles Sampson said.
There have been local events commemorating the famous civil rights leader for a number of years, he said.
"We, the committee, felt it was important to do something while the entire MU family was here," Sampson said. "On his birthday, we had a holiday and most other activities were held before students returned from break."
The week's events were to begin on Sunday with an address by Pulitzer Prize winner Roger Wilkins. Following that, a town hall forum was to be held to discuss issues.
"Unfortunately, the event was canceled because of the treacherous weather in St. Louis," Sampson said. "Our featured speaker was unable to fly in because most flights were canceled."
Sampson said the committee chose these events because they appropriately portray King's legacy.
"He had passed on a legacy and one way to look at that legacy is to look at the different policies affected," Sampson said.
Sampson said it is important for all citizens to involve themselves in events such as this.
"Whether students or senior citizens, all citizens need to participate in public policy discussions," he said. "This will allow them the opportunity to do so."
For more information and a full list of scheduled events, students can visit www.missouri.edu/~mlkwww/.