New York MLK Day event provides new perspective
The Media Living Learning Center students visited New York City on a networking and experience trip over the Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend, Jan. 16-19. During the trip, they met with alumni and toured the offices of New York’s famous media sites.
By Nicole Johnson
On this year’s trip, the Media LLC visited the Apollo Theater to see an event celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This event was not only a celebration, but a panel of guest speakers discussed the issues that black Americans are facing today and how they can draw inspiration from the civil rights movements of the 1960s.
The event, called “Hear Our Voices, Count Our Votes: MLK’s March Continues,” was sponsored by the theater and by WNYC, a New York radio station. The speakers were recorded and the event was broadcast on TV and radio at a different time.
WNYC serves its New York City community by broadcasting events that raise awareness and bring people together in order to make a better future. The event also aimed at reaching a younger audience, and the later radio broadcast was sure to help.
The LLC members were inspired to hear from speakers such as MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry and Congressman Charles B. Rangel, who energized the crowd and shared their thoughts and strategies on how to fight against the police brutality and social injustice seen in Ferguson and New York.
The diversity within, not only the theater, but also in the inspiring speeches, gave the LLC students a new perspective.