MONROE, Mich. – Monroe County Community College is inviting the public along with students, faculty and staff to participate in a variety of events to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the week of Jan. 20-24.
All of the events and activities are free.
On Monday, Jan. 20, the college will be closed in observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
On Tuesday, Jan. 21, Christina Klein, adjunct faculty member at MCCC who holds bachelor's and master's degrees in history from the University of Toledo and recently completed her doctoral coursework at Binghamton University, will present "MLK's Impact on Michigan" from 11 a..m.-noon via Zoom. Klein Join via Zoom at www.monroeccc.edu/MLKmichigan.
On Wednesday, Jan. 22, Dr. Beverly Tomek, dean of humanities and social sciences at MCCC, author and a historian of civil rights movements in the U.S., will present 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail: Fighting Unjust Laws through Nonviolent Direct Action" from 10-11 a.m. via Zoom.
According to history.com, in 1963, days after being jailed in Birmingham, Ala. for a series of anti-segregation protests, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. penned a response to his critics on some scraps of paper. This open letter is now known as his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” and it offered a forceful defense of the protest campaign. The letter is now regarded as one of the greatest texts of the American civil rights movement.
Tomek's published books include "Slavery and Abolition in Pennsylvania," "New Directions in the Study of African-American Recolonization," "Colonization and its Discontents: Emancipation, Emigration and Antislavery in Antebellum Pennsylvania" and "Pennsylvania Hall: A 'Legal Lynching' in the Shadow of the Liberty Bell." She is currently writing a biography of 20th-century civil rights leader James Farmer.
Join via Zoom at www.monroeccc.edu/birmingham.
On Friday, Jan. 24, MCCC will host the annual Unity Peace March from noon -1 p.m. Participants will meet in Downtown Monroe on the south side of the MLK Pedestrian Bridge and march east on Front Street, north over the Monroe Street Bridge and west on Elm Street to conclude at the MLK Monument in St. Mary’s Park. Please dress for the weather.
For more information regarding on these events, please contact Emily Wilcock, human resources assistant and DEI lead, at (734) 384-4179 or ewilcock@monroeccc.edu.
About Monroe County Community College
Founded in 1964, Monroe County Community College is a public, two-year institution supported by tax monies from Monroe County, educational funds from the State of Michigan and student tuition.
The college’s mission is to enrich lives in our community by providing opportunity through student-focused, affordable, quality higher education and other learning experiences. The Main Campus is located at 1555 South Raisinville Road, Monroe, Mich., 48161, with easy access to Toledo and Detroit. The Whitman Center is located at 7777 Lewis Ave.,Temperance, Mich., 48182, near the Ohio-Michigan Border. Detailed information about MCCC is available at www.monroeccc.edu.