January 16, 2003

King Day celebration is Monday

Northwestern will commemorate the life and legacy of the late civil rights and human rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. with special events that include a keynote address by Princeton University professor and author Cornel West.

Northwestern has set aside three hours — from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. — Monday (Jan. 20) for a University-wide observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. All but one of the events are open to the public, and the events are free, unless otherwise noted.

Chicago and Evanston campus classes from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. have been cancelled for Monday. Offices on both campuses will either close or operate with minimal staffing to allow staff members to attend the events during those hours.

The 11 a.m. Monday Northwestern University Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall begins with greetings from University President Henry S. Bienen; Cook County Circuit Court Judge Ronald C. Riley, Northwestern Trustee and alumnus; and Evanston Mayor and Northwestern alumna Lorraine Morton.

Keynote speaker West is the Class of 1943 University Professor of Religion at Princeton University. The title of his talk is “Race Matters.” A book signing by West will be held in the Pick-Staiger lobby immediately following the program.

The celebration at Pick-Staiger also will feature performances by the Northwestern Community Ensemble, a multicultural campus ensemble founded in 1971 that sings anthems, spirituals, hymn arrangements and traditional and contemporary gospel, praise and worship songs, and the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra performing “Let Freedom Ring.” The event is presented by the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Committee. A live broadcast of the Evanston campus program will be shown in Owen L. Coon Forum, Leverone Hall, and the Ryan Family Auditorium, Technological Institute. A live Webcast will be simultaneously shown at www.northwestern.edu/mlk.

On the Chicago campus, the 11 a.m. Monday celebration will be held at Thorne Auditorium. This ticketed program is for University students, faculty and staff members only and will feature performances by Habeas Chorus and Midwestern Wind. Thorne Auditorium doors will open at 10:15 a.m. A live broadcast of the Chicago campus program will be shown in the Arthur Rubloff Building, classrooms 140 and 150. Tickets are required and ticket distribution is on a first-come, first-served basis. Ticket distribution information is available at www.law.northwestern.edu/dream/ or call (312) 503-0785. Tickets are available with WildCARD or Northwestern Memorial Hospital identification. The student-organized program is presented by the DREAM Committee.

Other Evanston events include:

• The 24th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Forum and Candlelight Vigil at 7:30 p.m. Friday (Jan. 17) at Alice Millar Chapel will feature remarks by President Bienen and a keynote address by Jeffrey Johnson, National Director of the Youth, College and Young Adult Division for the National Association for the Advance-ment of Colored People. The vigil is presented by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Alpha Mu Chapter, and the Office of the Chaplain.

• Civil rights photographer Ernest C. Withers will be the guest speaker during the Gertrude and G.D. Crain Jr. Lecture Series at 4 p.m. Monday at the McCormick Tribune Center Forum. Withers has photographed the history of the civil rights movement for more than a half-century.