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<\/a>Satara Patrick<\/strong> John W. Franklin, the speaker for the 43rd Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Convocation, admonished everyone to know their history as he traced the African American journey through decades and several continents.The convocation was held at the Rose E. McCoy at Jackson State University.<\/p>\n Franklin, director of Partnerships and International Programs for the National Museum of African American History and Culture, also urged the audience to honor King\u2019s legacy by making the world a better place, by modeling his courage, faith and commitment to service.<\/p>\n \u201cYou must know your own family history by talking with your family, asking questions and listening to stories. Ask about people in family photographs.\u201d \u201cOur history is linked to different places. We must begin to look at the bigger picture,\u201d said Franklin. \u201cDon\u2019t assume that everyone\u2019s experience is the same as yours. Talk to each other and learn each other\u2019s history. \u201d others who were part of what he called a cultural renaissance.\u00a0 He urged students to gain more knowledge by reading as many books as possible. \u201cLearning is life long, even after school,\u201d he said. \u201cRead everything you can get your hands on.\u201d<\/p>\n Some students who attended the convocation said they gained a valuable understanding about knowing their own history as well as getting to know others and being involved in the community.<\/p>\n Sherman Robinson, a sophomore business administration major from Jackson, Miss., said: \u201cThe convocation was very informative and I gained an appreciation for my own race by learning where we came from so that I can get to a better place in life.\u201d<\/p>\n Lauren Head, a sophomore political science major from Marrero, La., said: \u201cThis seminar was much innovated. It gave me a different insight about the importance of knowing my history and others, but overall it was a great history lesson.\u201d<\/p>\n Oral Historian Owen Brooks, who received the 2006 For My People Award, echoed Franklin when it comes to knowing one\u2019s history. Brooks acknowledged how even at his age of 83, he has yet to know all the history of his family ancestry.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are and we continue to be a country of immigrants\u2026I call again to your attention the importance of knowing your own history,\u201d said Brooks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Satara Patrick Staff Writer John W. Franklin, the speaker for the 43rd Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Convocation, admonished everyone to know their…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_plus_post_options":"{}","editor_plus_copied_stylings":"{}","_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/841"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=841"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/841\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=841"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=841"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=841"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nStaff Writer<\/strong><\/p>\n
\nFranklin\u2019s major point was about the importance of individuals exploring their history beyond current events and locations, and how they must follow up on where they came from in the past.<\/p>\n
\nFranklin shared his love of history and his fascination with reading as he talked about authors such as Dr. Margaret Walker Alexander, James Baldwin, and<\/p>\n