Vigil commemorates Martin Luther King Jr. Day’s 30th anniversary
“If you can’t fly, then run. If you can’t run, then walk. If you can’t walk, then crawl. But whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.”
Michelle Bogdan-Holt, director of the Access and Diversity Center at Utah State University, opened the 2016 Martin Luther King Jr. vigil using the civil rights activist speaker’s own words.
The program was held in the Taggart Student Center Ballroom on Tuesday, January 19 at 6 p.m. The previous day marked the 30th year of Martin Luther King Jr. Day being recognized as a national holiday.
When USU Black Student Union secretary Jasmine Lee asked attendees if they knew Monday signified 30 years of honoring King, few raised their hands. Lee admitted she herself learned the fact earlier that day in class.
“I would want them to take away that we have come a really long way, but we still have a long way to go,” said Jeunee Roberts, USU’s Black Student Union president, when asked what she wanted attendees to come away with. “I think that it was everything that we wanted it to be. We got people that are walking away different than they were when they first came.”
Preceding the program were refreshments, provided by USU Catering, as well as a social justice art gallery displaying student submitted work. Winners in community and political movement categories were voted on and announced during the program.
After singing the black national anthem, keynote speaker Betty Sawyer was introduced. Sawyer is the coordinator of transition programs and partnerships, as well as the black scholars united advisor, at Weber State University.
Sawyer told the story of how she was selected to be one of the first students in her town to integrate. When she moved to Utah, she recalled it took two weeks for her to meet another black person.
“Where are all my people?” Sawyer said, met by the audience’s laughter.
Above all, Sawyer wanted her speech to be like a conversation. She shared a dialogue with the audience about how compassion, conviction, confidence and collective effort help further the work of social justice causes.
“I wanted to make sure that I wasn’t just talking to people, but getting people to think about it and be more engaged because that’s what it takes,” Sawyer said. “You can talk all day long, but until people decide that they’re going to take action, then things stay the same.”
Sawyer’s speech inspired many attendees, including BSU vice president Fallon Ferris.
“That’s what a lot of us really needed to hear, just some motivation and inspiration to tell us that you can still do it,” Ferris said. “I mean, Martin Luther King Jr. did what he did in the past, but it’s still not over.”
After the program, attendees participated in a candlelit silent march to Old Main. Roberts advised marchers to keep in mind what the march was for and why they were there.
Students and community members of many backgrounds walked together, lighting each other’s candles as they blew out from the cold winter’s night.
“I really love the fact that all students in all diversity came. I was really surprised by the support that the Black Student Union and Access and Diversity received from the university,” said Noelle Wilson, program coordinator for USU Access and Diversity. “It was an opportunity to come together as one and set aside our differences, and to celebrate what has been done through social justice work.”
Roberts also appreciated students of color having a voice on Utah State campus.
“I feel like we have come so far as a community already, but we still have a lot to do and a lot to accomplish,” Roberts said. “Especially having this voice in a predominately white university, it means a lot to us.”
Sawyer felt reassured by the turnout and knowing there are people in the community who are willing to do the work that still needs to be done.
“I just think it’s encouraging to see the students, faculty, staff and community to continue to come together after all of these years to commemorate the King holiday,” Sawyer said. “That shows us that we can continue to move forward.”
Students seeking to get involved with the black student community on campus can attend weekly BSU meetings. They are held every Wednesday from 5:35 to 6:35 p.m. in the Taggart Student Center Multicultural Lounge.
—whitney.howard@aggiemail.usu.edu