SMU’s annual ‘Dream Week’ celebrates the leadership of MLK

DALLAS (SMU) – SMU will honor the life, legacy, and influence of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with Dream Week, a series of campus-wide events planned to celebrate King’s legacy. The following events are open to the public:

Dallas ISD’s 32nd annual MLK Jr. Oratory Competition

Friday, Jan. 12, 11 a.m., McFarlin Auditorium

Co-sponsored by Foley & Lardner LLP, the competition features eight Dallas ISD fourth- and fifth-grade finalists who will present original three-to-five-minute speeches addressing the topic, “How would Dr. King reflect on the 60 years since his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech?”

Annual Unity Circle ceremony

Wednesday, Jan. 17, 12 noon to 1 p.m., SMU’s flagpole on the main quad, located at the north end of Bishop Boulevard.

SMU President R. Gerald Turner, K.C. Mmeje, vice president for student affairs; student representatives from the Association of Black Students and the National Pan-Hellenic Council; and faculty, staff, and students will gather to honor King’s ongoing legacy.

Lecture by Brian Williams, former Parkland trauma surgeon, activist fighting structural racism, health inequity, and gun violence.

Wednesday, Jan. 17, 6 p.m., Hughes-Trigg Student Center Auditorium

A leader in the U.S. military, academic medicine, public health, and public policy, Williams gained national prominence after leading the team that cared for police officers ambushed on July 7, 2016, in Dallas. His leadership after the ambush helped reform the role of civilians in police oversight.

For information on media parking for these events contact SMU Media Relations at news@smu.edu.

In addition, SMU is one of the sponsors of the MLK Scholarship and Awards Gala on Saturday, Jan. 13, in the Renaissance Dallas Hotel and a longtime sponsor of and participant in the 2024 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Parade on Monday, January 15.

The holiday recognizing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. has special significance for SMU as the civil rights leader spoke at the University on March 17, 1966, at the invitation of the Student Senate. Last year a historical marker was installed at SMU’s McFarlin Auditorium, recognizing the significance of his speech there.

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