On Jan. 20, 2025, Eastern Michigan University held their 39th annual Martin Luther King Jr. President’s Luncheon.
It was held in the Student Center Ballroom. The event encourages community members to come and honor Dr. King’s legacy while hearing from community members.
This year, attendees heard from inspiring speaker Mary Frances Berry, PhD, a renowned activist and historian. Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought at the University of Pennsylvania, where she also teaches History. She has worked with five presidential administrations, first as the Assistant Secretary for Education in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare from 1977 to 1980, and then as a member of the U.S. Commission of Civil Rights from 1980 to 2004. She has received 35 honorary doctoral degrees, as well as a long list of awards, including the Nelson Mandela award from the South African government for her efforts to end apartheid.
During her Q&A, Berry spoke about her work as an activist, including her time reporting on the war in Vietnam as an undercover anti-war protestor, and her time working with King’s wife, Coretta, during the Jimmy Carter administration.
“We would always ask, ‘What would Martin do?’... We didn’t always do what Martin did, c’mon now,” Berry said, in a moment that garnered laughs from the crowd.
Berry also reflected on her time at EMU, and her connection to the campus. While she was a law student at University of Michigan in 1968, she was secretly advising EMU's Black Student Association on their civil rights fight. Her mentorship ultimately lead to the occupation of Pierce Hall in 1969, contributing to the implementations of 11 civil rights demands from the group. According to University Archives, these demands looked to, "elevate the role of black students and African-American culture on campus to President Harold Sponberg."
"It was one of the most productive periods of my life. I met interesting students, I met wonderful faculty members," Berry said, citing the late Richard Abbott as one of these wonderful faculty.
She also spoke to young people, encouraging them to keep fighting for what they want in their lives, whether it be personal or systematic change.
“Have a vision of where you think things ought to go," Berry said. "No matter what happens, whatever stands in your way of doing what you want to do, just keep doing it. Keep on steppin, no matter what the thing is."
The event featured remarks from other notable speakers, namely University president James Smith, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Reverend Moshad A. Evans Sr., and the emcee, Chuck Stokes.
Stokes is the editorial and public affairs director for WXYZ-TV and Channel 7, and drew inspiration from King and his work. He said that King was one of his heroes and mentors, even though they never met. He hopes that events like this encourage people to remember what King fought for, and go forward with their own passions.
“The important thing about having a luncheon like this on an annual basis, it helps remind people, and helps remind each generation coming up of what the history of this country was,” Stokes said. “Also gives them inspiration to move forward on their own time in their own generation and to build their own legacy, because that's what Dr. King was talking about.”
The event also highlighted EMU students who have excelled in their writing and performance skills, as well as students receiving scholarships.
Ruth Mella, the 2024 Ypsilanti Youth Poet Laureate and the Martin Luther King Writing Scholar, and Sasha Greer, an Ohio state champion and two year National quarterfinalist in Forensics, both performed poems for the attendees. Five students, Michala Johnson, Victoria Huguley, Jada Norman, Makayla Williams, and Naomi Barbour, all won scholarships, while professor Imandeep Grewall, PhD, received the Martin Luther King Humanitarian Award.
It was not lost on many of the speakers that the day's festivities were coinciding with the Presidential Inauguration of Donald Trump. Though not always mentioned explicitly, subtle indicators were given during the different speeches, encouraging hope in uncertain times.
"We can make it through the years and months with our commitment to justice intact," Benson said. "We always have the power to define who we are in Michigan, who we are as a community, and who we are as individuals."
It was an afternoon of hope, education, and legacy-honoring for all attendees. Many left inspired and encouraged to continue Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy not just in January, but year round.
