Under the baobab: State College, Penn State have long tradition of honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
“…and it may well be that we will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and the violent actions of the bad people… but for the appalling silence of the good people who sit around saying, wait on time”
-Martin Luther King, Penn State, Rec Hall
Rev. Dr. King spoke at Rec Hall on the Penn State campus on Jan. 21, 1965. My friend and soul brother, Dan Walden, said it was a joyous and celebratory event. It was a few weeks after MLK had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. At 35, he was the youngest person and the second African American to be awarded the prestigious honor. It was a year and half after his “I Have a Dream” speech at the 1963 March on Washington. MLK first rose to national prominence as the leader of the successful Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955. He remained active in the civil and human rights movement for 13 more years. He was assassinated in 1968 while in Memphis supporting the Sanitation Workers strike.
His widow, Coretta Scott King, continued his civil rights and human rights efforts for another 40 years. She led the movement to build the King Center in Atlanta, establish the Poor People’s Campaign, led the American anti-apartheid and anti-Vietnam War movements, and was key in the long and difficult effort to make her husband’s birthday a national holiday. On Nov. 2, 1983 President Reagan signed a bill, proposed by Rep. Katie Hall of Indiana, into law, which created the federal holiday honoring King. First observed on Jan. 20, 1986, it has since been observed every third Monday of January.
On April 2012, former State College Borough Council member Peter Morris led the effort to pass Resolution 1066, which renamed former Fraser Plaza as Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Plaza. In 2016, the MLK Plaza committee, chaired by Barbara Farmer, was charged with reviewing and making recommendations to the Borough Council on the design, content and installation of commemorative elements within the proposed plaza. The plaza opened on Aug. 28, 2017, the 54th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
The MLK Plaza Committee evolved into a State College ABC, the Racial Equity Advisory Commission (REAC) established in January 2023 and chaired by Gary Abdullah. REAC assists and advises the Borough of State College on policies, practices, procedures and programs using a racial equity lens. REAC serves as a forum for public discussions and input on the various racial equity matters under the commission’s purview. REAC also engages in outreach and programming related to their purpose, recommending and coordinating programming or events held at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Plaza, instituting a visible racial/multi-cultural affirming/welcoming business program and training for local businesses and their employees, working with Borough staff to ensure that Borough facilitates, and events are inclusive and welcoming for all people, especially underrepresented populations.
This past Sunday, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Centre County, under the direction of the Rev. Tracy Sprawls and Ashley Hamlin, presented “Born on the Water,” an adaptation of a children’s version of Nicole Hannah-Jones’ 1619 Project. Other events that commemorate MLK Day will include: Monday night, the Forum on Black Affairs hosts the 49th Memorial Dinner at the BJC; on Tuesday, 7 p.m., Soledad O’Brien will present a guest lecture at Heritage Hall; on Wednesday there will be a Peace March starting at the MLK Plaza at 2:30 p.m.; Poetry, Prose and Performance Night will be held at HUB/Robeson at 6 p.m. Thursday. This Saturday at 4 p.m. in Eisenhower Auditorium, Essence of Joy, Essence II, the Howard University Gospel Choir and the State College Master Singers will feature “A Choral Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King.”
State College has not remained silent. Happy MLK Day.
Charles Dumas is a lifetime political activist, a professor emeritus from Penn State, and was the Democratic Party’s nominee for U.S. Congress in 2012. He was the 2022 Lion’s Paw Awardee and Living Legend honoree of the National Black Theatre Festival. He lives with his partner and wife of 50 years in State College.
