Martin Luther King Remembered
Jessica Cross
Issue date: 1/26/07 Section: News
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Students enjoyed a day off classes on Monday, January 15, and while many were sleeping until noon, others arose early with a purpose, to celebrate the courage of Martin Luther King. Student groups, Harambee and members of the Bonner Scholars had prepared a teach-in for fellow students.
At the MLK day teach-in, students listened to fellow classmates lead "class" about power and privilege and affirmative action. Members of Harambee, led by student president, Levi Harrell, spoke to the students and faculty that were present about affirmative action. Various speakers from the group spoke about historical events such as, the Jim Crow laws, lynching, civil rights lawsuits, amendments to the Constitution, and segregation.
"The teach-in allowed us to show our peers how American society has been affected by these legislations and how they have given us more opportunities" said Harrell. "But there are still hills we need to climb."
Bonner Scholars, Hannah Oliver and Katie Armstrong also led a teach-in about power and privilege. They spoke about human rights, read passages written by MLK and did an activity called the Privilege Line. For the Privilege Line, students lined up in a straight line on the brick road outside of Chambliss while Armstrong and Oliver asked questions that required students to take a step either forwards or backwards. These questions included not only questions concerning race, but financial status, physical abilities, and even questions concerning the students' background.
"The purpose of the activity was to make people aware of the discrimination in the world, under many different circumstances, such as race, money, and appearance, and to motivate them to take a stand against it," said Armstrong.
Everyone started out on the same line, but at the end of the game everyone was scattered. Even close friends found themselves far apart.
"I was located towards the front of the line and looking around I saw some of my close friends in the back. It shows that we all come from different backgrounds. No matter what our backgrounds are, we are all people. My friends will still be my friends either way," said freshman Buddy Brown in the discussion that followed the activity.
After the discussion, the teach-in ended with an invitation to the march in Dandridge at 11. Carson-Newman vans took students to participate in the annual march. After walking, students participated in a celebration at Bethel Presbyterian Church. The speakers at the celebration included the mayor of Dandridge, Harrell, and Rev. Dewey Roberts III, pastor of Full Armour Church in Knoxville.
The following day, a chapel service was held in remembrance of MLK. Dr. Bethany White, a new faculty member with the English department and faculty advisor of Harambee, spoke at the chapel service. Encouraging students to never give up, no matter what situations they are going through, Dr. White told students the difference God can make in lives.
"Martin Luther King day means that we can all be free not just as individuals but also as human beings. We can be free and choose what we want to accomplish with no barriers impeding us. It is a day that a man spoke a dream, and that dream became a reality. The lessons I took away from chapel are that MLK's dream still lives and it is still working to free us from the last remaining ravishes of discrimination," said junior Matthew Lawson.
On an average Monday in the United States, students at Carson-Newman met together to seek opportunity. MLK day honors a man who encouraged people that it was a time for change. In the words of MLK, "We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people…We must use time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always ripe to do right."
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