Cianna Hope Reeves
Blue & White Flash/ Managing Editor
In an effort to commemorate the life, legacy and stewardship of notable civil rights activist, Martin Luther King Jr. Jackson State University held its 51stAnnual MLK Convocation on Friday, January 18 in the Rose E. McCoy Auditorium.
The annual event is a program which started just months after King’s assassination in order to highlight the fight to freedom and expose attendees, specifically students, to the hardships many African Americans encountered during the Civil Rights Movement.
The ceremony was attended by staff, faculty, students, Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and keynote speaker Lottie Joiner.
JSU President William B. Bynum Jr. was proud to give reverence to King and insisted the legend should be acknowledged on his given holiday and that people should pay tribute contributing to society just as he did.
“When I think about his sacrifices and the commitment he had, King deserves this national holiday and we should celebrate it each and every day,” stated Bynum.
Mayor Lumumba welcomed the audience and stressed the importance of working collectively to create a peaceful city in the midst heightened crimes and gun violence. Jackson has witnessed a series of homicides just shy of 4 weeks into 2019, so the call for change has been the primary mission for local and state government officials to accomplish.
Lumumba declared, “We have to move to a place where we start building dignity, economies are focused on the dignity of every single person so our goal in the city of Jackson is not only how we solve our own problems but also how we come along to the rest of the world.”
The keynote speaker, Lottie Joiner, who is a Jackson native and JSU alum started her career focused on providing educational equity in underprivileged and overlooked communities as a faithful journalist for the American School Board Journal.
The journalist’s work goes beyond getting answers, she is a notable civil activist in her community as well. In 2015 Joiner was named the 2015 National Health Fellow for the Center of Health Journalist, a fellow of Jon Jay Criminal Award and also in 2017 she was given the honorary title of the 2017 Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalist.
Most recently Joiner was acknowledged as the prestigious recipient of the 2019 For My People Award—an accolade that recognizes one who exemplifies leadership, civic activism, and contributes to the African American community.
With many distinguished titles and accomplishments to her name, during her address she urged students to create positive change in the world and exercise a right many fought and died to obtain—the freedom to vote.
“Voting is about power if you don’t have power then you can’t change policies, but in order to get power you have to vote it’s the political infrastructure that will make a difference.”
She also encouraged individuals in the community to always give back and serve with good purpose, for those are the ways to break generational cycles of injustices and economic inequality.
Deja Oscar, a sophomore theatre major from Jackson, Miss., stated the MLK Convocation was not only a learning experience but it also allowed her to appreciate the sacrifice he tackled to attain justice for all.
“Martin Luther King was more than just a face for civil rights, he was a voice that spoke loudly and profoundly for those who weren’t yet ready to do so. It takes a lot of courage and determination to be a voice for the people, but I think he handled it excruciatingly well,” stated Oscar.
Sean Taylor, a senior healthcare administration major from St. Louis, Mo, said the program was also a realization that change must continue to occur.
“As African Americans we have come a long way and this ceremony taught me to that spreading peace and advocating for change does not stop at the death of Dr. King and all the other civil right activists, but we should continue on the journey as a community.”
