UND to celebrate MLK Jr.’s ‘Beloved Community’ with brunch, service project starting Monday, Jan. 15

Tomiko Brown-Nagin, author and dean of Harvard’s Radcliffe Institute, to give keynote speech.

On Monday, Jan. 15, from 10 a.m. to noon, UND’s Office of Diversity & Inclusion will be hosting its annual MLK Day Brunch in the Memorial Union Ballroom, Room 214.

Members of the community are invited to join in celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. and his concept of forming the “Beloved Community,” a society shaped by care and compassion and where there is no tolerance for hunger, poverty, bigotry or violence.

Tomiko Brown-Nagin, dean of Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study and chair of the Presidential Committee on Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery, will give a keynote speech, “Dr. King’s Pursuit of Justice and Beloved Community through the Law,” at the event.

“Dr. King’s life and activism contain enduring lessons about how to build community across our difference and pursue social change through the law. During these tumultuous times, I’m pleased to share my thoughts about the eternal wisdom of his teachings,” Nagin-Brown said, regarding the keynote.

Brown-Nagin is the Daniel P.S. Paul Professor of Constitutional Law at Harvard Law School and author of “Civil Rights Queen: Constance Baker Motley and the Struggle for Equality.” Copies of the book will be available for purchase at the UND Bookstore and the first 20 students to attend the event will receive a free copy. She will be autographing copies of the book following brunch.

The event will also announce new recipients of the Martin Luther King Jr. Social Justice Award, which recognizes individuals that display dedication to social justice and equality.

In recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day’s designation as a National Day of Service, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion also invites members of the community to join them in completing a service project from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Jan. 16-18, on the second floor of the Memorial Union.

Inspired by the King’s “Beloved Community,” the service project aims to pack 300 kits of safety and hygiene items for unhoused members of the Greater Grand Forks Community.

UND student ID is not required to attend either event and attendees may come and go as they please.

You can find updates and details on the University’s event calendar and the event’s Facebook page.