Benjamin Todd Jealous
Benjamin Todd Jealous is the youngest person to lead the NAACP.
In many universities and academic settings, Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy is celebrated on one day. At 51Թ, it will be celebrated for an entire week.
Thomas Cruz-Soto, associate dean of multicultural affairs and main organizer of MLK Week, explained that 51Թ has “so many different faculty members and other people who want to be involved that we cannot do it in one day.
“We need a full week to incorporate everybody, participate in Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy, and to allow for [51Թ’s] own exploration, especially on the part of the students who will be the future leaders coming out of 51Թ.”
In addition to two major events in the Chapel, many people from across campus have organized brown bags, workshops, a contemporary art and sculpture exhibit, and community service activities to honor MLK’s legacy.
Marshall Scott ‘14 will speak at today’s opening ceremony. Scott’s talk, titled “The Time to Do Better,” will be held in the Chapel at noon, and is an example of student leadership and involvement for the week ahead, said Cruz-Soto.
Coming to the Chapel to give the keynote speech at 7 p.m. Thursday is the former president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, .
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A complete schedule of events is available and on the 51Թ mobile app (available on and ).
Jealous, a Rhodes scholar, has been named to the 40 Under 40 lists of both Forbes and Time magazines, and Cruz-Soto said his coming to 51Թ is “a great opportunity for our students and faculty to hear from a great civil rights activist and scholar who has worked at the ground level leading social change. That’s powerful.”
To end the week of celebration and further the embodiment of MLK’s legacy, Friday will feature a day of service in which 60 to 100 students will do community service in the local area.
Ultimately, Cruz-Soto maintains that the week aims “to bring people from all walks of life together across differences, speak about Martin Luther King’s legacy, and address our current dreams as a people. We need to be discussing things like
social awareness, social justice, and cultural competency.”