BEST SMALL, NON-DAILY —2017 Virginia Press Association The independent press of Virginia Commonwealth University
NEWS Monroe Park • 2
February 19, 2018 • Vol. 59, No. 5
SPORTS Track meet • 5
SPECTRUM Ibram Kendi • 7
OPINIONS Parkland shooting • 9
In VCU visit, Martin Luther King III reflects on making long-sought “dream” a reality Author tackles “triple evils” of racism, poverty and militarism SAFFEYA AHMED Contributing Writer NIA TARIQ Contributing Writer In an address moderated Mayor Levar Stoney, Martin Luther King III — a community activist and son of the prominent leader of the Civil Rights Movement in the 60s — urged students and community members to embrace nonviolence and positivity. King reiterated his father’s message of nonviolence — especially when it comes to guns — before a crowd of more than 500 students, faculty and community members. “I am the recipient of gun violence,” King said. “But it did not deter me or distract me because I had to learn to dislike the evil act, but still love the individual.” King addressed the audience with a heavy heart as he recalled Wednesday’s school shooting in Parkland, Florida. Advocating for gun safety rather than control, King condemned civilian use of assault weapons. “In this society, we are obsessed and infatuated with guns. We have certainly created and sustained a culture of vio-
lence,” he said. “Until we begin to change the culture, we’re not going to be able to address these issues.” King said positivity and nonviolence are key and youth hold power in today’s society. “I certainly am so proud of those young people who are rising up, saying ‘enough is enough, and we’re not going to take it anymore,’” he said. King was the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, founder of Bounce TV and Realizing the Dream, Inc. and is on the board of directors for the Atlanta-based King Center, Drum Major Institute and the Metropolitan West Management Asset Corporation. His work in the nonprofit sector focuses on battling the “triple evils” of racism, poverty, and militarism, as laid out by his father. “The ideas of freedom, justice and nonviolence that my father championed during the movement have a special resonance in the wake of violence and hatred,” King said. “One of the most important things about the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech that I want everyone to understand is that he did not intend for it to be just a dream. Instead he intended that it be taken se-
An exclusive interview with the social justice activist
riously as a realistic vision by all Americans of good will.” King said he blames media corporations for spotlighting events like the Charlottesville neo-Nazi rally and Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. “We are a better society — a better nation — than the behavior that we are exhibiting,” he said. “It’s about money unfortunately. Ratings is how [the media] make money. That, we must change.” VCU President Michael Rao praised King’s strength as a leader. “His focus is really about the future,” Rao said. “He has a very perfect memory with respect to history, he has a very clear sense of a lot of the issues that we face today [and] he also has a really clear sense about where we need to go as people in the future.” King’s keynote address received a standing ovation. His closing words echoed those of his late father. “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in times of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in times of challenge and controversy,” King said.
SAFFEYA AHMED Contributing Writer NIA TARIQ Contributing Writer Martin Luther King III is a social justice activist, international public speaker and author. King’s work in the nonprofit sector combats the “triple evils” of racism, poverty and militarism, mirroring the work of his father Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In his visit to VCU on Sunday, King met with student and community leaders and delivered a keynote address. King shared his views on recent events and social justice issues. The Stoneman-Douglas High School Shooting
“There’s something wrong when our society is stuck and chooses not to do something about an issue that’s so serious. We should always be protecting our young people. A nation is judged by how it treats its most precious resource. “Certainly our most precious resource would be our children. There are students all over
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America who feel that they’re not safe. We have to create a safe space.” “Nothing has been done from a legal perspective for the laws to change and make gun safety an issue. There’s nothing ever that one can say positive about an incident where people lose their lives, but the positiveness is that others will become engaged and fight in the struggle and challenge the nation to become better. “I enjoy understanding where students are today because every moment, as it relates to leadership, is infused by student engagement. Although it’s very tragic that 17 persons lost theirs lives in Florida, it’s very refreshing to see students leading a movement to say “listen, do we really need assault weapons?” I feel very positive about what the prospects — the best really is yet to come and we’re just scratching the surface.” Embracing a Culture of Nonviolence
“I certainly believe that nonviolence is a viable option to be used, but people have to be trained and taught how to use
Grace E. Harris, the highest-ranking African-American woman in VCU’s history, dies at age 84 Remembering Grace Harris —read on page 3
nonviolence. It’s not something we automatically learn because when we are growing up, the philosophy is if somebody hits you, you hit them back. “Now unfortunately, it’s become if somebody hits you, you shoot them. Once a gun is used, it’s the end. We have created a culture of violence and accepted it. The more violence there is, the more we seem to embrace it. We have to teach people how to use a different methodology to address their conflict. We must find a way to create a culture of nonviolence. That will change the trajectory tremendously, I believe. “Everything lies in teaching and training. People have to say to their educators and school systems that they want conflict resolution. That means sensitivity training, human relations training, diversity training — all of that becomes part of a curriculum. That is what we must work toward, I believe, if we want to truly change our society to create this culture of nonviolence.” continued on page 7