Photos // Claire McKenna
IN REMEMBRANCE OF MARTIN. The concluding documentary at the event featured personal comments from Dr. King’s friends and family.
By: Claire McKennaStaff-Writer
On Jan. 21, the Center for Understanding, Belonging and Experiences (the CUBE) hosted a screening of different speeches and documentaries about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Almost every hour, starting at 10 a.m., a new film was shown. Some were compilations of speeches; others were documentaries of his life, showing protests and letting family members and friends talk about him. These movies were shown until 3 p.m.
Misel Ramirez Vasoli, CUBE coordinator, said she thought it was very important to show these films to students.
“The reason why I hosted this event is because there has never been an official event in IU South bend to commemorate Martin Luther King,” Ramirez Vasoli said. “It’s small and I wish I had more time to broadcast it out there, but my hope is with the time students will know that there is programming for this.”
Ramirez Vasoli spoke about how, following Dr. King’s footsteps, it is important that people themselves take action in ways that they can.
“We cannot just be bystanders and witness things, we in a way must take action,” Ramirez Vasoli said. “I’m not saying everyone should go out there and protest, but an action could be ‘I’m going to go learn more about this.’ My action was that I am going to share more about this. Any action has a consequence, and people think it has to be so big, but even an action to educate ourselves I think is important.”
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was made a federal holiday by former President Ronald Reagan in 1983. It is celebrated every third Monday of January to commemorate Dr. King’s birthday, Jan. 15, although the holiday rarely falls on that date. Students often might think of it as a day off, but the day is designated to be a day of service, and people are often encouraged to volunteer in their community.
Photos // Claire McKennaI’VE BEEN TO THE MOUNTAINTOP.’ A poster of different Martin Luther King Jr. quotes stands in front of the CUBE.