Each year on the third Monday of January, schools, federal offices, post offices, and banks across America close as we celebrate the birth, the life, and the dream of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It is a time for the nation to remember the injustices that Dr. King stood against and the rights he stood for: equity, freedom, and dignity. Dr. King furthered his cause through nonviolent direct action protest.

Reed College, like Dr. King, recognizes the power of community engagement. MLK Day of Community Engagement honors Dr. King's legacy by transforming the day off to a day ON. We invite the Reed community to celebrate this day by building mutually beneficial relationships within the community, fostering sustainable and positive change, developing tools for self-reflection, and building a passion for lifelong community engagement.

We invite the Reed community to join us the following events. We hope that you will join us!

Monday, January 20, 12 p.m.
Reed will provide van transportation to Portland's Reclaim MLK Annual March for Human Rights and Dignity (12 p.m.) and University of Portland's MLK Keynote: Walidah Imarisha, "Why Aren't There More Black People in Oregon?" (3:30 p.m.). Indicate your interest on the RSVP form!

Saturday, January 25, 9 a.m.–4 p.m.
Reed will provide van transportation to: MLK's Beloved Community: Exploring Black Activism, Creativity, and Resilience in Portland, a collaborative event between Reed, Portland State University, Portland Community College, and Oregon Campus Compact (9 a.m.–4 p.m.). The day-long series of workshops and panels includes a Reed-sponsored workshop with Ori Gallery on Art as Resistance. For more information, please go to this link. Please note that all on-campus events will be held in the Performing Arts Building at Reed College. Directions may be found here. Questions and accommodations requests can be made to SEEDS@reed.edu.

Tuesday, January 28, 6–7 p.m.
Reed's MLK Day of Engagement Keynote Speaker this year is Ijeoma Oluo, author of So You Want To Talk About Race. The public lecture will be from 6-7pm in Vollum Lecture Hall and a book signing reception will follow. This event is free and open to the public. Free copies of So You Want To Talk About Race are available for Reed community members in Eliot Hall 312 prior to the event.

This event is sponsored by the Office for Institutional Diversity, Multicultural Resource Center, Office for Student Engagement, and SEEDS* Community Engagement Office.

*Students for Education, Equity, and Direct Service

RSVP via online form.