In Memory of Martin Luther King, Jr

The third Monday of every year is not just a no-school day, but it is a day to remember the powerful leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. At ImpACT, we spent two weekends discussing with the students about what civil rights is and shared about all the ways we are thankful for Dr. King. The teachers and team lead had never seen these students so calm as when we were watching the “I Have a Dream” speech. Afterwards, the students talked about all their different friends and all the ways they were living in the world Dr. King dreamed about.

Each student picked a few of their favorite lines and created a collage to put the words of the speech into pictures. Using pictures ranging from children playing together, real red hills of Georgia, to portraits of our nation’s current president, the students illustrated their favorite lines. The students went through hundreds of magazines to find the perfect pictures that inspired and reminded them of the speech. Afterwards, in groups, the students shared what their collages meant and why they chose the pictures they chose—everyone’s was unique and personal.

The following weekend, one of the tutors read aloud from a book written by Dr. King’s older sister, Christine King Farris. All the students learned that Dr. King as a child was very much like themselves—full of energy and curiosity to learn more. One picture in particular showed us all the importance of hard work; it was a picture of Dr. King staying up all night to go through his speech for the twentieth time.

The teachers also asked some tough questions to  help the students as they wrote personal  responses to all they had heard. As we helped the students understand how Dr. King’s March on Washington has affected all our lives, we also hoped that these students will be the next leaders to create positive change in their generations.