MEDIA, Pa. — Penn State Brandywine’s Center for Ethics and Civic Engagement will host a series of virtual events to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The programs are presented in partnership with the Greater Philadelphia Martin Luther King Day of Service, whose 2021 theme is “Justice and the COVID-19 Health Crisis,” and co-sponsored by Penn State Abington’s Student Engagement and Leadership office.
Event details and registration links are available online at engage.bw.psu.edu/mlk-day.
The following programs are presented through Zoom and are open to the public at no charge:
— From 7 to 10 p.m. on Jan. 18, the 2014 historical drama “Selma” will be streamed. The film is based on the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights marches initiated and directed by James Bevel and led by Martin Luther King Jr., Hosea Williams and John Lewis.
— From noon to 1:15 p.m. on Jan. 19, a panel of staff and faculty from Penn State’s Brandywine and Abington campuses will discuss the inequities of COVID-19 and race.
— From 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Jan. 20, the campus will host a watch party and livestream of the presidential inauguration.
— From noon to 1:15 p.m. on Jan. 25, the campus will hold a screening and discussion of a segment of "Unnatural Causes," a PBS documentary series exploring the racial and socioeconomic inequalities in health.
— From noon to 1:15 p.m. on Jan. 26, the campus will explore the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on people of color using the living-room conversation model to facilitate discussion and exchange ideas.
— From 7 to 10 p.m. on Jan. 27, the legal drama film “Just Mercy” will be streamed. The film is based on the real-life work of civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson, who fought tirelessly to overturn the conviction of Walter McMillian, a man sentenced to die in 1987 for the murder of an 18-year-old girl despite evidence proving his innocence.
The following programs will be presented through Zoom and are open to campus students, faculty and staff:
— From 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Jan. 18, the campus will share videos of Brandywine and Abington student leaders reflecting on the significance of inaugurating Kamala Harris as the first female and first African-American vice president and how King’s words apply to our current struggles with systemic racism. The videos will be followed by a discussion.
— From noon to 1:15 p.m. on Jan. 21, a trivia competition will test participants’ knowledge of King’s life and legacy as well as current events, with top finishers receiving bookstore gift certificates.
For additional information about the events, contact Vippy Yee, Rosenberg Director of the Center for Ethics and Civic Engagement, at vxy3@psu.edu.