Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration

With the inauguration of America's first black president looming over the country, students nearly filled the Student Union Theater Monday night to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day in a ceremony that venerated the civil rights activist through speeches and the singing of an elementary school choir, and did not hesitate to praise President-elect Barack Obama.

The keynote speaker of the event was Dr. Cato Laurencin, UConn's vice president for health affairs and dean of the School of Medicine. Event organizer and African American Cultural Center Director Willena Kimpson Price met him at a lunch with UConn President Michael Hogan, and was impressed by his grasp of civil rights issues and personal struggle with racism, and so he was asked to speak, she said.

Laurencin's speech was entitled Have We Come to the Place for Which Our Fathers Sighed? and it questioned the state of race relations in America by reminding students that the election of the first black president would not solve racism.

Despite the social progress, Laurencin was quick to point out that the average black male in America has a lifespan seven years shorter than his white counterpart, and is generally more susceptible to - and less likely to survive - diseases like prostate cancer and AIDS.

Laurencin also pointed out that a larger percentage of prisoners are black than white, creating a debilitating "prison industrial complex."

He then conceded that today's social problems do not negate the great progress the country has made in race relations.

"If [Martin Luther King Jr.] were here today, he would say that, despite our problems, our sense of community and spirituality still exist," Laurencin said. "With those we may still win the day."

He then recalled the progress made so far, citing progressive black citizens like activist Paul Robeson and astronaut May Jameson, and the stark difference from his childhood, spent growing up in the '60s during the height of 20th century American racism. Laurencin related a story where his family, on a road trip, was forced to drive without stopping once for fear of being denied service.

He finished his speech by urging students to "become agents of change" and contribute to furthering civil rights.

"At the dawn of this new day, I have great optimism for this country," he said.

Also speaking were Price, Dana McGee, the associate vice president for diversity and equity and Nancy Bull, the interim vice provost for academic administration. The three urged students to understand the importance of Obama's election in the story of civil rights, and recalled King's place in it.

"Remember what you were doing when you watch the inauguration, because one day your grandkids will ask you where you where when it happened," Bull said.

The proceedings also involved the Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School Choir of Hartford, which sang songs like the spiritual 'Wade in the Water,' and, despite a few cracked voices and poorly timed swaying, was warmly received by attendants.

There was also an impassioned reading of King's Letter from Birmingham Jail by graduate students Gretchen Goode and Brooks Brantly, a document some recognize as being responsible for elevating the reverend to national attention.

The event ended with a candlelight Vigil on Fairfield Way and a group singing of 'We Shall Overcome' led by the African American Cultural Center.

"[The event] was really good," said 4th-semester sociology major Austin Edwards. "It's good to see so many diverse people show up."

"It shows we've progressed," he said. "Things aren't perfect, but it's a good way to start."

Price was also ecstatic at the turnout.

"To many students this is a day off," she said. "And to see so many people take a break from unpacking to attend is marvelous."

"It just makes me feel so much bigger and better," she said. "I'm only about 5-foot-8, but right now I feel about 6-foot-8."