91����Ƶ hosted its ninth annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on Monday, Jan. 19, featuring a series of events honoring the life and legacy of the late civil rights leader.

The theme of this year’s celebration was “Beyond the Dream: Social Justice and Ecological Consciousness,” and it focused on the message of Dr. King’s 1967 Christmas sermon, in which he preached about all life on Earth being interconnected. “Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly,” he said.

Monday’s events began at 9:45 a.m. with a unity march inside the University Commons. 91����Ƶ two dozen students, faculty, and staff members held signs calling for peace and justice as they completed three laps around the indoor track. Each year, the unity march pays tribute to the many nonviolent marches led by Dr. King and others during the civil rights movement. 

The group of marchers proceeded to Lehman Auditorium, where members of the Black Student Alliance (BSA) and other students shared quotes from Dr. King and reflected on his legacy during Speak Out. One quote that resonated deeply was: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Celeste Thomas, director of Multicultural Student Services at 91����Ƶ and chair of the committee planning the MLK Jr. celebration, said Dr. King imagined a world with community instead of chaos, love instead of hate, and no one going hungry. He imagined a world where families are not separated, where there are no food deserts and everyone has clean water, and where countries don’t bully one another for resources, she added. “Beloved community is sustainability for all mankind,” she said.

Harrisonburg Mayor Deanna Reed, director of alumni engagement and community connections at 91����Ƶ, spoke about the theme of the day. “Going beyond the dream means understanding justice is not passive,” she said. “It requires participation, it requires responsibility, and that’s where you come in, 91����Ƶ students. You’re not on the sidelines of this work. You are already shaping the future of communities like Harrisonburg through the choices you make, the careers you pursue, the voices you raise, and the values you carry forward. Don’t just remember him, carry his dream forward.”

Interim President Rev. Dr. Shannon W. Dycus spoke about Claudette Colvin, a 15-year-old who was arrested in 1955 for refusing to give up her seat on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, nine months before Rosa Parks did the same. Dycus, who noted that Colvin passed away on Jan. 13, 2026, said the young activist had inspired her for many years. “Both King and Colvin teach us what justice and power look like in necessary ways,” Dycus said. “We gather not out of tradition, not because the calendar tells us to, but because we are committed to taking seriously the work of building equitable, compassionate, and just communities. This is who we are, not just what we do.”

Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò, an associate professor of philosophy at Georgetown University and a fellow at the Climate and Community Institute, served as the featured speaker for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Convocation. He is the author of Elite Capture and Reconsidering Reparations, a contributor to Greta Thunberg’s The Climate Book, and a past recipient of a Marguerite Casey Freedom Scholar fellowship. His presentation was titled “Becoming Firefighters: Climate Justice and the Fight for a Free World.”

He examined recent actions taken by the federal administration to seize oil assets in Venezuela and spoke about the political and economic power of fossil fuel companies. “The control those people and their allies have over our entire lives depends on the political power they wield and defend with the money they get destroying our air and water,” he said. 

Following the convocation, a ceremony on Thomas Plaza rededicated the 91����Ƶ Peace Pole with a vision for peace, justice, and shalom on Earth, including all living things (represented by a new plaque featuring animal prints). The Peace Pole was recently resealed and painted and has newly installed “May Peace Prevail on Earth” plaques. 

Throughout the day, the conference room inside the Student Life Suite transformed into an aromatherapy space, filled with the scents of soap and essential oils. Simone McKelvey, owner of the Simone & Tuesday skincare brand, led two interactive demonstrations, teaching students, faculty, and staff how to create their own soap from scratch using natural ingredients. “Your skin is your largest organ,” she said, “and a lot of the time, we don’t pay attention to what we put on it.”

Participants worked in pairs at eight slow cookers, melting coconut, sunflower, and castor oils, adding lye to distilled water, and mixing the concoction with a stick blender and essential oils to create bars of soap. “When you go to the store and visit the soap aisle, some of them are soap, but some of them aren’t,” McKelvey said. “Some are detergents made with synthetic chemicals. True soap is what you’re making today.”

The sound of knives chopping onions, horseradish, garlic, hot peppers, ginger, and other vegetables reverberated through the Old Common Grounds space on Monday as participants in two interactive workshops sliced and diced fresh, locally sourced, organic ingredients to create their own jars of fire cider. The apple cider vinegar-based tonic supports immunity and digestion and is packed with  antioxidants, antibacterials, and antimicrobials, making it an ideal remedy for the colder months. In about four weeks, the jars can be strained and used to enhance everything from seltzer water and salad dressing to collard greens, pickles, and hot toddies.

The demonstrations were led by the sister-owners of Kinfolk Farm, a Black women-led farm in rural West Virginia dedicated to nourishing the brilliance, creativity, and legacy of Black and Indigenous people of the Global Majority.

Scroll through a photo album of the day below!

Thanks to Multicultural Student Services, Student Life, and the office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for planning the series of meaningful and educational events to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

This year’s lineup of events includes a convocation with author and philosophy professor Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò, two workshops teaching participants how to create their own handmade soap, and two sessions demonstrating the use and benefits of a spicy, vinegar-based tonic known as “fire cider.” All events are open to the public.

The celebration is themed “Beyond the Dream: Social Justice and Ecological Consciousness” and centers around the words of Dr. King’s “A Christmas Sermon on Peace” speech from 1967:

It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects on directly, affects all indirectly.

The chosen theme closely aligns with the university theme of sustainability for the 2025-26 academic year. “That was intentional,” said Celeste Thomas, director of multicultural student services at 91����Ƶ and chair of the committee planning the celebration. “This is a good time in our country to remember that not everyone is equally privileged and that we should really pay attention to Dr. King’s quote. We are all interconnected, and it’s a great time to practice self-care and self-awareness, recognizing that everyone’s journey is different.”

Monday’s events start at 9:45 a.m. in University Commons with a Unity March around the indoor track. The march will proceed to Lehman Auditorium, where an open forum-style Speak Out event will be held at 10 a.m.

Convocation

Convocation at 10:15 a.m. in Lehman Auditorium will be led by , an associate professor of philosophy at Georgetown University and a fellow at the Climate and Community Institute. Táíwò is the author of Elite Capture and Reconsidering Reparations, a contributor to Greta Thunberg’s The Climate Book, and a past recipient of a Marguerite Casey Freedom Scholar fellowship. His presentation will be livestreamed on and uploaded to the 91����Ƶ .

“A lot of his work is around social justice reparations and how it connects to sustainability, which we’ll hear in his speech,” Thomas said. “He really fits what we want to do and the message we want to convey.”

Following his convocation, a soul food lunch will be served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Northlawn Cafeteria. From 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., Táíwò will lead a Q&A session at the MainStage Theater (University Commons 170). 

Soapmaking

In the afternoon, two “Skin Sabbath” soapmaking sessions led by Simone McKelvey of Simone & Tuesday will be held in University Commons 211/212. The first session will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the second session will be from 2:45 to 4:45 p.m. Limited space is available for participation and advance is required. Seats will be available for unregistered participants who can watch the demonstrations.

Simone & Tuesday is a natural skincare solutions company founded on the belief that healthier skin should be natural, affordable, and for everyone. Through her soapmaking sessions, McKelvey teaches small groups how to make their own all-natural, personal care products.

“We held an event called ‘Hairitage’ last February with BSA during Black History Month, where students made their own hair products, and it was packed,” Thomas said. “That helped me realize that this generation of students responds well to hands-on activities. They enjoy the opportunity to take something home with them when they leave.”

Fire cider

A pair of fire cider workshops led by Kinfolk Farm will be held at the Old Common Grounds space (University Commons 177) from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 2:45 to 4:45 p.m. Limited space is also available for participation in this event and so advance is required. Seats will be available for unregistered participants who can watch the demonstrations.

The Black woman-led farm in rural West Virginia is dedicated to nourishing the brilliance, creativity, and legacy of Black, indigenous people of the Global Majority. At Kinfolk Farm, food sovereignty, land liberation, and healing justice are daily practices woven into the way they plant, harvest, cook, and gather in community.

Participants in these two interactive sessions will learn the history of fire cider along with its traditional wellness practices. They’ll also be invited to try a sample! The spicy, tangy folk remedy is often used to support the immune system and is typically made by infusing apple cider vinegar with ingredients such as horseradish, ginger, garlic, onion, hot peppers, and honey. 

Climate simulation

A world climate simulation facilitated by Levi Clymer ’25, 91����Ƶ event operations coordinator, will be held from 2:45 to 4:45 p.m. at the University Commons Student Union. Participants in this interactive exercise will act out the roles of international delegates at a United Nations summit and negotiate a global agreement to prevent the worst impacts of climate change. is also needed to participate in this event.

In case of changes to events due to inclement weather, visit for updates.

The morning kicked off with a unity march around the indoor track in University Commons. Students, faculty, staff and other community members held signs with messages of peace and justice.

During an open forum event called Speak Out, students and staff shared quotes from Dr. King that resonated with them and spoke to the theme of the day, “Radical Truth-telling.” Celeste Thomas, director of multicultural student services and chair of the committee planning the day’s events, said: “Silence is not always golden, and if the narrative is wrong, we need to correct it.”

The life of Dr. King is a special model for 91����Ƶ, explained President Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman in her remarks at Convocation, as the university aspires to fulfill its vision.

“As we honor King’s legacy today, we underscore the ways our educational core values of academic excellence, peace and justice, and active faith intersect at 91����Ƶ as we form a discerning community of learners,” she said.

Huxman, who is retiring at the end of the 2024-25 academic year after having served nine years as 91����Ƶ’s ninth president and first woman president, was instrumental in working with Thomas to create a day of events at 91����Ƶ to commemorate Dr. King. During only her second year at 91����Ƶ, the inaugural MLK Jr. Celebration was approved as a “day on” for learning, education, and service. 

“At 91����Ƶ, we take the full day to commemorate, reflect, serve, and take inspiration from the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.,” Huxman said in her remarks. “We take the day off so we can take the day on. So, while there are no classes, there is lots of engaged learning going on. So, seize the day, 91����Ƶ Royals!”

“We take the day off so we can take the day on.”

91����Ƶ President Susan Schultz Huxman

The 91����Ƶ Gospel Choir, led by senior music major Kay Pettus and accompanied by Music Program Director Dr. David Berry on piano, performed “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” “Every Praise” and Stevie Wonder’s “Happy Birthday,” a song that celebrates King’s Jan. 15 birthday.

Jodie Geddes MA ’16, an international speaker on restorative justice, author, and advocate of racial healing and justice, served as keynote speaker for Convocation. She spoke about her work on a truth-telling project shining light on the 1919 massacre in Elaine, Arkansas, as well as her experiences at a reconciliation village in Rwanda that seeks to unite survivors and perpetrators of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. A video recording of Convocation is available to watch on the 91����Ƶ Facebook page .

In the MainStage Theater, 91����Ƶ History Professor Dr. Mark Sawin delivered a riveting presentation on the history of the family who lived in and operated the at  252 N. Mason St. in Harrisonburg. The five-bedroom, one-bathroom house was listed in several editions of The Green Book, a guide featuring businesses across the nation that welcomed Black travelers during Jim Crow, until the early 1960s. The professor, who serves as the consulting historian for the house, used old photos found inside the home, interviews with neighbors, and clippings of archived Daily News-Record articles to weave together stories of the people who lived and stayed there. These days, the family of Harrisonburg Mayor Deanna Reed, director of alumni engagement and community connections at 91����Ƶ, own the property and are in the process of transitioning the ownership to a 501c3 nonprofit.

On Monday afternoon, conversation circles facilitated by the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) encouraged open dialogue and guided discussion about radical truth-telling. Geddes was on hand at the Studio Theater for a workshop (pictured above) that engaged in journaling, meditation, and therapeutic processes.

In the evening, students gathered at University Commons for a special event where they could make their own hair care products.

Coverage of the day from local media

• WHSV-TV:

• Daily News-Record:

91����Ƶ will host the eighth annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on Sunday, Jan. 19, and Monday, Jan. 20, 2025.

This year’s MLK Day is themed “Radical Truth-telling” and centers around the words of a 1947 essay written by King while at Morehouse College: “Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction.” 

A film screening of “Black Wall Street Burning” will take place from 6-8 p.m. on Sunday has been postponed until Monday, January 27. The film is a retelling of the Tulsa race massacre of 1921, when mobs of white residents attacked Black residents and destroyed homes and businesses of the Greenwood District in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A talkback session will follow the screening. 

Monday’s activities include a 9:45 a.m. Unity March in University Commons, a 10 a.m. Speak Out at Lehman Auditorium, and a 10:15 a.m. Convocation featuring Jodie Geddes MA ’16. Geddes, co-author of The Little Book of Racial Healing, advocate for racial healing and justice, and international speaker on restorative justice, will deliver a talk on “Radical Truth-telling.”

Other events on Monday include a soul food lunch at Northlawn Cafeteria, circle processes facilitated by the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding, a Black hair care and free cuts event, and a session on the history of Harrisonburg’s Ida Mae Francis Guest House. This last event, hosted by Professor Mark Sawin, is from 1:30-3 p.m. in University Commons 176.

A three-part “Resistance and Rest” workshop, hosted by Geddes, will be held from 3-5 p.m. in the Studio Theater. The workshop will engage in journaling, meditation and therapeutic processes.

Celeste Thomas, director of multicultural student services at 91����Ƶ and chair of the committee planning the celebration, said this year’s theme of “Radical Truth-telling” challenges us to embrace Dr. King’s vision by confronting uncomfortable truths and fostering honest dialogue about our shared history and future.

“Through these events, which reflect 91����Ƶ’s values of academic excellence, peace and justice, and active faith, we hope to inspire our community to engage in meaningful reflection and action,” Thomas said.

91����Ƶ the Convocation speaker

Jodie Geddes holds an MA in conflict transformation from 91����Ƶ’s Center for Justice & Peacebuilding. While at 91����Ƶ, Geddes explored the intersections of peacebuilding, restorative justice and systems change. She works with , providing support for community members experiencing crises with mental wellness as well as other community resources. She is the co-manager for , a nonprofit affiliated with 91����Ƶ that provides training and resources for communities and individuals to explore the history and legacy of enslavement.

The event, which has been held since 2019, honors the life and legacy of the late civil rights leader. This year’s theme was “Remember, Celebrate, Thrive” and featured a tour of the Northeast Neighborhood on Saturday, a movie screening of Rustin on Sunday, and a full slate of activities on Monday, which are recapped below.

Convocation featuring the Virginia Union University Gospel Choir

The Virginia Union University Gospel Choir, which hosted the 91����Ƶ Chamber Singers at its Richmond campus in October (read about that here), traveled to Harrisonburg, Virginia, on Monday to perform a series of songs for Convocation. VUU Choir Director Joel Lester led 13 members of the group in seven soulful and spirited songs that had many in the Lehman Auditorium pews dancing and clapping along. The Chamber Singers joined the VUU Gospel Choir on stage for a performance of “I Need You to Survive” to close out the concert.

In her opening remarks, Harrisonburg Mayor Deanna Reed asked the crowd how they would continue to honor the life and legacy of Dr. King after the holiday passes.

“How will we thrive, especially during a time of unrest and division?” asked Reed, who is 91����Ƶ’s regional advancement director. “How will we thrive when many of us believe that, as a nation, we are not moving in the direction of peace, justice and equality? How will we thrive when old wounds and racist ways of thinking have reared their evil head? I believe Dr. King would say, ‘We thrive when we stand. We thrive when we break the silence. We thrive when we are caught up with what is right and willing to sacrifice for it.'”

In addition to Reed, city council members Chris Jones and Dany Fleming, as well as members of the local press, were in attendance. Read the Daily News-Record‘s front-page coverage of the event . A video recording of Convocation is available to watch on the 91����Ƶ Facebook page .

Solidarity March

A group of about 20 demonstrators during Monday morning’s Solidarity March left an impression on the snow-covered campus — in more ways than one — as they looped around the University Commons track and marched across the grounds to Lehman Auditorium. Carrying posters reading “Keep marching,” “My hope is Black students will thrive on campus — not just survive” and “Free! At last!” the marchers reflected on the sacrifices made during the Civil Rights Movement and called for further work to promote racial equity.

Speak Out

At Speak Out, an open mic-styled event that offered an opportunity to share thoughts and feelings about the day, participants recited poems and read from speeches given by Martin Luther King Jr.

91����Ƶ junior Mikayla Pettus (pictured in the top photo) delivered a riveting performance about having a mixed-race identity. As she simulated herself getting ready for the day, putting on makeup and getting her hair ready, a recording of some of the offensive things people might say to someone who is mixed-race played over the speakers. A video recording of Speak Out is available to watch on the 91����Ƶ Facebook page .

‘Black & 25 in America’

Playwright and actor Jeremy Gillett performed his one-man show, Black & 25 in America, at Lehman on Monday. The play features five different characters in a series of vignettes about the lives of young Black people in America. Gillett effortlessly transformed into each character, adopting the mannerisms and colloquialisms of five starkly different identities, including a high school football star trapped in a house of crack cocaine dealers, a “brown kid from the suburbs” who resembled Theo Huxtable, and a gay Black man struggling with his sexual orientation.

The celebration, held on the Harrisonburg, Virginia, campus from Saturday, Jan. 13, to Monday, Jan. 15, is themed “Remember, Celebrate, Thrive.”

“We need to remember that a lot of people are standing on the shoulders of giants who came before us during the Civil Rights Movement,” said Celeste Thomas, director of multicultural student services at 91����Ƶ and chair of the committee planning the celebration. “We have to remember their sacrifice and all their hard work, but we also have to celebrate the accomplishments that came out of that. So, we celebrate what has been achieved and then stand on those shoulders so we can thrive as a community.”

A wide range of activities and events will honor the iconic civil rights leader:

Saturday, Jan. 13

11 a.m.-2 p.m. — Northeast Neighborhood tour: Monica Robinson, executive director of the Shenandoah Valley Black Heritage Project, will lead a tour of the Northeast Neighborhood, a historic community built by and for African-Americans in Harrisonburg following the Civil War. 

Stops along the tour include the Bethel AME Church, with information about the neighboring Dallard-Newman House, and discussions and lunch provided at the Lucy F. Simms Continuing Education Center. Rides from 91����Ƶ will depart from the Black Lives Matter mural in front of the University Commons at 10:30 a.m. Registration is required to attend the tour, and is available online at emu.edu/mlk.

Sunday, Jan. 14

6 p.m. — Screening of Rustin: A biopic of Bayard Rustin, adviser to MLK and chief organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, will be shown in the MainStage Theater on Sunday evening. The film, released in November, stars actor Colman Domingo as the title character and Chris Rock as activist Roy Wilkins. Rustin faced struggles not only because of his race, but also his sexuality as an openly gay Black man. 

“The Civil Rights Movement was a diverse movement of people from all spectrums of ethnicity, religion and sexuality,” Thomas said. 

A talk-back session after the screening will discuss the film (runtime: one hour, 46 minutes; rating: PG-13) and answer questions. 

Monday, Jan. 15

9:15 a.m. — Solidarity March: A silent march will proceed from the BLM mural outside University Commons to Lehman Auditorium to kick off Martin Luther King Jr. Day. 

“Marches were what happened throughout the Movement,” Thomas said. “You had the March on Washington, the march between Selma and Montgomery, you had marches in Memphis, to show solidarity.” 

Students are invited to create posters in the Student Life office on Sunday night to display during the march.

“It’s a silent march, so that people are concentrating and reflecting on the movement and how it has supported them and how it affects them today,” Thomas said. 

9:30 a.m. — Speak Out: Following the march, 91����Ƶ students, faculty and staff and other community members are encouraged to share their thoughts, feelings, music, poetry and anything else supporting the celebration’s theme at Lehman Auditorium. 

“People will have an opportunity to come to the microphone and share in whichever way they want to share,” Thomas said. 

The event will wrap up with a preselected student monologue.

10 a.m. — Black & 25 in America: Playwright and actor Jeremy Gillett will perform his one-man show, Black & 25 in America, at Lehman Auditorium. The Kentucky native portrays five different characters in a series of vignettes about the lives of young Black people in America that explores the issues of race, class, gender and identity. 

A talk-back session will offer audience members a chance to engage with him after the performance. 

12:30 p.m. — Lunch at Northlawn Cafeteria: A special soul food-inspired menu will be served at the dining hall. “I want to give credit to Dining Services, Pioneer College Caterers, and to Food Service Director Shannon Grinnan for working with us on that special menu for the day,” Thomas said. Regular dining charges will apply for the lunch. 

2 p.m. — Convocation featuring the VUU Gospel Choir: Hailing from Richmond, the Virginia Union University Gospel Choir will perform at Lehman Auditorium. In October, the historically Black university invited the 91����Ƶ Chamber Singers to perform on its stage with them and Grammy Award-winning artist Hezekiah Walker during a live recording. You can read more about the partnership between the two schools here. 

91����Ƶ Music Program Director David Berry will open Convocation with a medley, followed by remarks from 91����Ƶ President Susan Schultz Huxman, Thomas and Harrisonburg Mayor Deanna Reed. After a series of songs from the VUU Gospel Choir, the 91����Ƶ Chamber Singers will join them for a performance of I Need You to Survive.

Those attending Convocation are asked to bring a nonperishable food item to donate for the food drive.

7 p.m. — There is a Field screening: A showing of the movie There is a Field inside the old Common Grounds space will round off the MLK Jr. Celebration on Monday evening. The movie mirrors the struggles of Palestinian activists in Israel with members of Black communities in the U.S. It will be followed by a talk-back session, cosponsored by Tim Seidel, Trina Nussbaum and the Center for Interfaith Engagement. This event has been postponed due to inclement weather

All events, other than the lunch on Monday, are free to attend. For more information about the performers and events, visit emu.edu/mlk. 

Thomas credited the 91����Ƶ Black Student Alliance and Tyler Goss, director for student engagement and leadership development, for their help.

“I think, if people come out,” Thomas said, “they’ll learn something not only about other people, but also about themselves.”