Current and former Wayne State University faculty and staff are available to discuss the impact and relevance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Detroit as the nation celebrates the opening of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial in West Potomac Park, Washington, D.C. The official dedication is set for Sunday, Aug. 28, 2011, the 48th anniversary of the March on Washington and King's historic "I Have a Dream" speech.
Melba Joyce Boyd, distinguished professor and chair of Africana Studies, is the author of 13 books, and she lectures at universities and conferences throughout the United States and abroad. Boyd has published more than 50 essays on African American literature and film. She can discuss the historical impact of King in Detroit and the significance of the memorial.
Dr. Silas Norman Jr., assistant dean for admissions in the School of Medicine, can discuss issues related to diversity and inclusion as well as share his experiences during the civil rights era. As student leader in 1961, Norman was among the hundreds of Freedom Riders to travel via interstate buses to Alabama in protest of racial segregation and inequality. Additionally, Norman served as the Alabama state director for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.
Victor Green, director of community relations in the Office of Government and Community Affairs, works with his staff to manage and coordinate the university's annual Martin Luther King Jr. tribute, a multifaceted community event to honor King's legacy. The tribute is held each year after Martin Luther King Jr. Day and has included keynote addresses from distinguished leaders like Judge Damon J. Keith, Dr. Benjamin Carson, Rev. C. T. Vivian, and Essence magazine Editor Emerita Susan L. Taylor.
Arthur Johnson, author of Race and Remembrance (WSU Press) and former Wayne State professor and administrator, is a Georgia native who graduated from Morehouse College and Atlanta University. He moved north in 1950 to become executive secretary of the Detroit branch of the NAACP. He also served as vice president of university relations and professor of educational sociology at Wayne State University for nearly a quarter century. In the book, Johnson discusses his encounters with Martin Luther King Jr., a Morehouse classmate.
Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution of higher education offering more than 400 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 32,000 students.