Teach the Speech Teach-In: I Have A Dream

This year, Georgetown University's MLK: "Let Freedom Ring!" Initiative honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. will provide the opportunity to continue the conversations on our campus about our capacity to bring about social change. Guided by Dr. King's vision of a beloved community, we encourage all members of the university to reflect on urgent problems that demand social action.

Each year, Georgetown faculty, staff, and students across campuses and schools read and reflect on one of Dr. King's speeches or texts during the Spring semester. In the last nine years, University community members have participated in this cross-campus curricular initiative by teaching Dr. King's "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" (2013), about the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (2014), Dr. King's "The Other America" speech (2015), his Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech (2016), "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break the Silence" (2017), "I've Been to the Mountaintop" (2018), "Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution" (2019), "Where do we go from here?" (2020), and "Our God is Marching On" (2021) in their courses and educational spaces.

For 2022, the Provost's Office encourages University community members to read and reflect on Dr. King's 1965 speech entitled "I Have A Dream" during the Spring 2022 semester. Students are encouraged to attend a virtual Teach-In on Tuesday, January 11, 2022, the day before classes start, co-hosted by the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS), the Center for Social Justice (CSJ), the Doyle Engaging Difference Program, and the Division of Student Affairs. Register via CampusGroups for the Zoom link.

The Teach-In will feature two short keynote addresses, a student reflection, and a facilitated dialogue among our three speakers. Our first invited mini keynote will be offered by Virginia State Senator Jennifer McClellan, whose political career and service as Chair of the Virginia Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Commission showcases her commitment to racial and social justice. Our second invited mini keynote is from Georgetown University Law Center Class of 2004 graduate, Neonu Jewell, JD, MBA, MDiv, who serves as the Critical Race Theory Research Fellow at the African American Policy Forum. Veronica Williams (C'23), a junior in the College pursuing a major in American Studies and minors in Psychology and Public Health, will offer the student reflection. Ijeoma Njaka (G'19), Senior Program Associate for Equity-Centered Design at the Red House and Inclusive Pedagogy Specialist at the Laboratory for Global Performance & Politics, will facilitate a dialogue with the speakers.

11:30am: Community Gathering with Music — Please bring your meal to the Zoom so we might enjoy some food together!

12:00pm: Welcome by Ryann Craig, Ph.D., Director of Student Programs, Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs

followed by a student reflection by Veronica Williams (C'23) and mini-keynotes by Virginia State Senator Jennifer McClellan and Neonu Jewell (L'04) of the African American Policy Forum

1:00pm: Dialogue with our three speakers facilitated by Ijeoma Njaka (G'19), Senior Program Associate for Equity-Centered Design at the Red House

1:40pm: Gratitude by Maya Williams, Program Manager, Office of Student Equity and Inclusion

Center for Social Justice Research, Teaching & Service | View More Events
Co-hosted with: LGBTQ Center, The Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs