Martin Luther King Jr.’s most famous words may be “I have a dream,” but his impact is much broader, Darin Toliver says. “He was a role model, a freedom fighter, a social justice advocate, a visionary, you name it.” Toliver is associate director of the African-American Resource Center (AARC), which organizes the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and the Symposium on Social Change. This year, in addition to volunteer opportunities, the Day of Service will include an educational component with MLK 101: A Reintroduction to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“We do all these events, these clean-ups, these beautification projects, but sometimes we get away from who Dr. King was, what his tenets around education, nonviolence, and direct action are and what he was trying to do in terms of being a social change agent,” Toliver says. “Dr. King was instrumental in changing the landscape of America. It’s very important that we remind society of the sacrifices that he gave for us to be where we are today.”
The 29th annual Day of Service will be held on Jan. 15, staring with a kickoff breakfast with guest speaker Charisse Burden-Stelly, Associate professor of African American studies at Wayne State University, at 8:30 a.m. in Houston Hall’s Hall of Flags.
The day’s service opportunities include a beautification project at Henry C. Lea school starting at 10 a.m. and A Pocketbook Full of Toiletries Project and the Sock Stuffing Project, both in Bodek Lounge at 10:30 a.m., where volunteers will fill bags and socks with personal items people staying in local shelters.
Penn Vet will continue hosting their annual Free Dog and Cat Wellness and Vaccination Clinic, by appointment only. Appointments for the clinic may be made via the Penn Ryan Veterinary Hospital’s appointment desk at 215-898-4680 between 8 and 10 a.m. on weekdays.
The Day of Service always includes activities for young children. In the Penn Reads Literacy and Children’s Art Project, children ages 3 to 8 are invited to the Van Pelt Library to explore the stacks, participate in a theatrical story time, and create a book to take home. For older children, the virtual workshop So You Want to Go to College? will walk students and their caregivers through the college admissions and financial aid application process.
Symposium events will continue through Feb. 3. Highlights include the Candlelight Vigils led by the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity on Jan. 22, the Interfaith Commemoration and Conversation in Social Justice on Jan. 25 featuring a conversation on Black and Jewish dialogue with David Wolpe and Jonah Platt, and the MLK Hallmark Program, which will discuss the Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action and its implications on higher education on Jan. 29.
A complete listing of Symposium events can be found online or on the events page of the AARC website.
