Keene State College’s Associate Vice President for Institutional Diversity and Equity has been tabbed as this year’s keynote speaker for the Jaffrey Civic Center’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.
“Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr.” will take place on Monday from 5 to 6 p.m. at the United Church of Jaffrey. The event will be heralded at 4:45 p.m. with the ringing of the United Church’s Revere bell as part of the “Let Freedom Ring: Choose Non-Violence” national bell ringing ceremonies.
“It’s an honor for me, I’m always humbled by he opportunity to do things that commemorate the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” Morris said. “Every time, it’s and honor and a privilege.”
Morris will center her speech on the event’s theme – “we are all one humanity” – by focusing on King’s message of the beloved community.
“The beloved community is more of a process, an ongoing lifelong process of individuals, the systems, and the community,” Morris said. “It’s flexible and based on love.”
Morris said the idea of the beloved community and the other teachings of Dr. King are things she implements into her every day life, her teaching and work at Keene State College, and her work in the broader community.
“It has become a foundation of what we talk about when we engage with the community,” Morris said. “When I’m talking to the mayor of Keene, I asked how do we make Keene a beloved community?… it’s a community based on love and compassion for one another.”
If he was alive today, Morris said Dr. King would likely be leading the charge to break down barriers of divisiveness so that people could join together.
“I think that there would be some parts [of our community] that he’d be happy about and other areas that could lead to some sadness,” Morris said. “I think he would probably say we haven’t achieved anything. I think it would be mixed for him… I feel a bit mixed myself.”
In addition to Morris’ speech, guest refugee speakers who are clients of the International Institute of New England will share their experiences.
Winners of the MLK Middle School Student Art Contest will be announced, and school choirs will perform music.
Following the event, there will be a reception at the MLK Student Exhibit at the Jaffrey Civic Center.
There will also be a celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. in the town of Hancock this year.
“I think his messages are as true today as they was back then,” Harriet DiCicco, one of the event planners, said Wednesday. “This event is to remember a man who was courageous, and stood up in a time where it probably took even more courage.”
DiCicco said the event was inspired by a group of people from Hancock and other surrounding towns who have been meeting twice a month to talk about topics involving race in a safe and inclusive forum.
“We found out that Hancock had not done anything special to celebrate MLK Day, and decided to do something to raise awareness for MLK Day, and to show that there are local groups meeting and having these conversations,” DiCicco said.
At 10 a.m. on Monday the celebration kicks off with a reading of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. The reading will intertwine a recording of King, along with 13 volunteers who will read paragraphs of the speech.
The speech will conclude with a ringing of the Hancock Congregational Church steeple bell.
Due to weather conditions, DiCicco said the event will be held in the vestry building. If conditions improve, the speech portion of the event may be held in the town bandstand.
Following the speech, there will be refreshments and those in attendance will be led in song by the Monadnock Justice Choir.
DiCicco said there will also be handouts available for those interested in joining the group.
Nicholas Handy can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 235 or nhandy@ledgertranscript.com.