A jam-packed day of mural painting, book-on-tape recording and candlelight vigils took place yesterday to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
First on the day's agenda was breakfast in Houston Hall, where a diverse crowd prayed, laughed and applauded as speaker after speaker, including University President Amy Gutmann, took the podium to praise a hero on his birthday.
"It is very exciting to see that everyone embraces Dr. King's vision - not just the black community and not just in the South," College sophomore Erica Evans said.
After the breakfast, the crowd dispersed to participate in various volunteer activities on what organizers called "a day on, and not a day off."
Students and faculty in attendance participated in community-service events such as painting and cleaning up a West Philadelphia high school and stuffing pillows to be donated to shelters and hospitals in West Philadelphia.
The theme of this year's symposium was "mobilizing for peace and social justice." Organizers - who spanned both students and faculty - placed a special focus on volunteer work as a response to the increased crime in West Philadelphia, said Afi Roberson-Heywood, the co-chairwoman of the symposium's executive planning committee.
And for many, this active focus made the day much more than a break from classes.
"In high school, MLK day was a day off, but it is nice to be active today. It makes today more of what it should be, rather than a holiday," College freshman Jody Pollock said.
College sophomore Vipul Kumar - who is on the United Minorities Council, which co-sponsored yesterday's day of service - echoed these sentiments.
"King was always striving to have people from different backgrounds unite and respect one another," he said. "The day of service hopes to foster this legacy."
The breakfast and the day of service were the beginning of the two-week-long annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Symposium on Social Change, which was sponsored by a wide range of faculty and student organizations.
"All of this is a way to get people from all walks of life to get together," Roberson-Heywood said.
She added that the objective of the events planned for the next two weeks is to unite people around King's legacy.
The symposium will also feature the annual Interfaith Program, an event that celebrates King as a religious icon.
"He was motivated by his belief in God and God's justice," University Chaplain William Gipson said of the program's inspiration.
Other upcoming symposium events include a conversation between the civil-rights activist Harry Belafonte and Penn History professor Mary Frances Berry - also the former chairwoman of the Civil Rights Commission - Roberson-Heywood said.
"Belafonte and Frances Berry represent the legacy of Dr. King and continue to deal with issues of civil rights and social justice in their lives," said Sean Vereen, associate director of the Center for Africana Studies, which is sponsoring the talk.
Ninety-nine percent of the symposium was funded by the Offices of the President and the Provost. Heywood would not say how much the event is costing.
Yesterday's events were capped off by a candlelight vigil across campus, where students walked from the Quadrangle and DuBois and Hill college houses to Houston Hall holding candles.
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