UPDATE: Jan. 15 2018

Campus students will not attend class on Martin Luther King Jr. Day to honor Martin Luther and his legacy, Jan. 15. Students will return to classes Tuesday, Jan. 16.

Teachers, students acknowledge contributions of Dr. King

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., born with the name Michael Luther, was a baptist minister and a social activist who played a lead role in the American Civil Rights Movement. Throughout the 1900s, people of color were held lower than others even though they were freed from slavery.

Schools, public bathrooms and even drinking fountains were different for each type of person. The buildings and amenities for black people were poorly maintained and in very bad condition.

Today that has changed, thanks to the Civil Rights Movement. The main activist, Mr. King, encouraged others to take a stand for their rights. Martin Luther King Jr. was born in 1929 and attended segregated schools his entire life.

He started college when he was 15 and graduated from Morehouse College with his Bachelor’s degree in 1948. After attending college, King began traveling and spoke about social rights. King became part of the executive committee of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

“The time is always right to do what is right.” Martin Luther King, Jr. #BlackHistoryMonth

— Rod Parsley (@RealRodParsley) February 7, 2018

Later, King became a minister and gave his first sermon when he was 18 at his father’s church, Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. He was appointed to serve as assistant pastor.

One of King’s biggest achievements was being recruited for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The Bus Boycott was on of the major events that started civil rights movement. The King Center writes:

“In 1955, he was recruited to serve as spokesman for the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was a campaign by the African-American population of Montgomery, Alabama to force integration of the city’s bus lines. After 381 days of nearly universal participation by citizens of the black community, many of whom had to walk miles to work each day as a result, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in transportation was unconstitutional.”

Junior high history teacher Hallie Rojeski remembers hearing about Dr. King when she was in college. However, it wasn’t until later that she realized how important of a historical figure he would become.

“Martin Luther King was part of my history growing up,” Rojeski said. “I was in college and starting to teach when he was really prominent with the Civil Rights movement. That would be my first knowledge of him. He was a Christian, a man who understood the importance of civil disobedience as opposed to violent protests.”

This victory led King to give more speeches and become more involved than he already was. King went on to give one of the most famous speeches in history. King’s most famous speech was his “I Have a Dream” speech. The “I Have a Dream Speech”, which was given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, called for peace and racial equality. King shared how he believed things should be and the injustice that was being done.

Martin Luther King was part of my history growing up. I was in college and starting to teach when he was really prominent with the Civil Rights movement. That would be my first knowledge of him. He was a Christian, a man who understood the importance of civil disobedience as opposed to violent protests. — Hallie Rojeski

History.com explains the importance of of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

“The March on Washington culminated in King’s most famous address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, a spirited call for peace and equality that many consider a masterpiece of rhetoric.“this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed”

Students on campus learn about Dr. King in history class, but many don’t fully realize the impact he had on society. Freshman Sturgeous Demetreous, ‘21, reflects on his knowledge about Martin Luther King, Jr.

“I don’t know much about Martin Luther King, Jr.,” Demetreos said. “I have learned a little about how he stood up for the people who were discriminated and also how he got assassinated. I think if he didn’t stand up for people’s rights things would be very different.”

The NobelPrize.org also writes about his experience around the world.

“King traveled over six million miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, appearing wherever there was injustice, protest, and action; and meanwhile he wrote five books as well as numerous articles. In these years, he led a massive protest in Birmingham, Alabama, that caught the attention of the entire world, providing what he called a coalition of conscience.”

However, many people heavily disagreed with King and one of the took action and assassinated him on April 4, 1968. After leading striking sanitation workers and giving his last speech, “I’ve been to the mountaintop,” he was assassinated on the balcony of the motel he was staying at in Memphis, Tennessee.

Biography.com discusses the effects he had even after his death.

“Martin Luther King Jr.’s life had a seismic impact on race relations in the United States. Years after his death, he is the most widely known African-American leader of his era. His life and work have been honored with a national holiday, schools and public buildings named after him, and a memorial on Independence Mall in Washington, D.C. But his life remains controversial as well. In the 1970s, FBI files, released under the Freedom of Information Act, revealed that he was under government surveillance, and suggested his involvement in adulterous relationships and communist influences. Over the years, extensive archival studies have led to a more balanced and comprehensive assessment of his life, portraying him as a complex figure: flawed, fallible and limited in his control over the mass movements with which he was associated, yet a visionary leader who was deeply committed to achieving social justice through nonviolent means.”

In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, there will be no school on Monday. This weekend, pause to remember the contributions that Dr. King gave to this nation.

For more articles, check out Sibling Series: Mackenzie and Taylor Beckworth. For more related, read 98th Fresno Veterans Day Parade seeks to honor veterans, recognize service.

This author can be reached via twitter via @OwenMonke and via email: Owen Monke.