Response to MLK Night
By Anonymous TSC reader
I've always enjoyed MLK night, a night of live entertainment, thought-provoking skits, and watching friends perform their work.
Yet, as the poems, songs and skits set in, I couldn't help but think, this is not what Martin Luther King Jr. would have wanted.
Very few of the skits had to do with how far we have come as a united nation or celebrating equality. The point of the event is to make all feel welcome, supported and united. But the feeling in the room was not one of unity and multicultural appreciation.
I can appreciate that part of what makes our nation great is accepting and appreciating individual cultures and recognizing them as their own entities which contribute to a greater whole, but when you segment the different cultures to this degree, you find yourself with pieces rather than a whole pie.
Unfortunately, the well performed, organized and directed event of MLK Night comes across with a less than unity-driven attitude.
The theme of the night was "what is black?" By giving the event this title, its organizers immediately identified only one racial group and made it the mission statement of the event to define a concept which is clearly not something that can be defined by words, and can vary from person to person.
The definition of the word segregate is defined as such, "to separate or set apart from others or from the main body or group; isolate." MLK night, as it was organized, isolated the word black as the focus of the entire evening and set it apart from all other races.
MLK night should recognize all cultures and races if it truly aims to spread awareness about equality for all. Should we have a night dedicated to each race? "What is white?", "What is Asian?", etc. We all struggle with identity, heritage and social conflicts.
By singing the "Black National Anthem" at the end of the performance, the members of Igwebuike set themselves further apart from other cultures. To have a separate national anthem completely segregates the black community from the rest of the nation. This country is home to countless ethnicities and should be celebrated as such.
The mission of a black student group? "To promote multiculturalism on campus and to spread awareness about pan-africanism." But is this how they come across?
Why can't we coexist peacefully instead of emphasizing the differences in upbringing, culture and traditions?
In the words of MLK himself, "I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream..." This is all I ask of Igwe members, please consider the words of the leader of civil rights himself.