The Muhammad Ali Center will host an event Monday to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the presidential inauguration. The event will include a webcast of the inaugural musical performance and the Inauguration ceremony. It will be followed by screenings of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech . The center’s Council of Student Representatives will lead a discussion after the screening. Topics will include the civil rights movement, inequalities in education, gender equity and racial issues. Ali Center spokesperson Jeannie Kanke says that these discussions are important because they inspire community action. “It’s important to talk about issues like this because we’re really one humanity. If there is injustice in the school system or among friends, among races, among genders, it’s a problem that affects all of us.” Kanke says that the event is meant to honor what she calls the meaningfulness of Martin Luther King Jr’s influence on current events. “It’s great this year that the inauguration and Martin Luther King Jr. Day are on the same day, because it really gives them a chance to celebrate African-American history, celebrate being an American, and looking back and witnessing it in the present as to really how far our country has come.” The free event begins at 10:30 a.m.
