Kicking off Sunday, Jan. 14, Bates College observes Martin Luther King Jr. Day with three days of community events centered around the theme of “Power, Politics, and Privilege: Resistance to/through Education.”

Bates' long tradition of reflection, discussion and communal learning honoring the civil rights leader includes workshops, film screenings, readings, panel discussions, performances, an intercollegiate debate, and a keynote address. All programs are open to the public and the debate and keynote address will be live streamed at bates.edu/mlk/live.

See the full schedule of Bates' MLK Day programming at bates.edu/mlk. All events are free and open to the public, but some require advanced registration.

“Martin Luther King Jr. Day plays an important role at Bates,” says Mara Tieken, assistant professor of education and MLK Day Planning Committee co-chair. "It is a day to reflect upon the long struggle for racial justice in this country, and also to consider how we, as a campus community, can do more to realize Bates' mission of equity and inclusion.

“This year's theme speaks to how education -- formal and informal, K-12 and higher education, public and private -- has been, and continues to be, both a tool of oppression and also a means of liberation and self-determination.”

The 2018 keynote speaker is Na'ilah Suad Nasir, the president of the Spencer Foundation, one of the largest and most influential independent funders of education research. Nasir will discuss "The Education Imperative: Dreaming a New Public Education Dream.”

Another highly anticipated MLK Day event is the annual Rev. Dr. Benjamin Elijah Mays Debate between members of the Bates and Morehouse college debate teams. Mays was an alumnus of Bates and former president of Morehouse. Each year, the two schools debate pertinent topics in honor of Mays’ civil rights advocacy and mentorship of Martin Luther King Jr.

About Bates College
Since 1855, Bates has been dedicated to the emancipating potential of the liberal arts and sciences, educating the whole person through creative and rigorous scholarship in a collaborative residential community.

Bates has always admitted students without regard to gender, race, religion or national origin, boldly embracing the transformative power of difference, cultivating intellectual discovery and informed civic action, and preparing leaders sustained by a love of learning and a commitment to responsible stewardship of the wider world.