In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, President David Wippman, Dean of Students Terry Martinez and leaders of the Days-Massolo Center hosted “We Are His Dream,” an event to make a conscious effort as a community to keep King’s vision alive.
The event captured the communal spirit in its very name, which President Wippman pointed out was not “I Have a Dream,” but, “We Are His Dream.”
“[Tonight] is a realization of our own vision of what kind of community we want to create here on campus and what type of community we can create with the communities around us,” Wippman said.
Maria Genao-Homs, associate dean of students for diversity and inclusion, then provided a backdrop to the event by introducing the Land Acknowledgement, a “formal statement that recognizes the unique and enduring relationship that exists between indigenous people and their territories.”
The evening served to remind everyone of their crucial role in building a community and working with the world they have inherited.
“I ask you to reflect on the land that we are standing on today, realizing that injustices of today reflect injustices of the past” Genao-Homs said.
Faculty and students of all departments and years sat at tables of six or seven to work on projects together. Each table included pieces of a puzzle and a question. Some of the questions included, “What does social activism mean to you?” and “How does ‘knowing thy self’ influence your ability to engage across difference?”
The answers to these questions were to be written on the puzzle pieces, which the table would need to assemble as a group. Afterward, one member would take a picture of the answer and share it across social media. In other words, the activity demonstrated that physical boundaries cannot prevent members from building a community.
“I wanted to go to this event to join the campus community in celebrating and fulfilling Martin Luther King Junior’s message,” Emma Weller ’19 said. “I enjoyed the interactive aspect of it and am glad to have met new faces in the community.”
In this new year, “We Are His Dream” was a conscious commitment to resolutions that are the foundation of Martin Luther King Junior’s Dream, creating a community of strength and inclusivity.
