December 9, 2004

Martin Luther King III To Be Keynote Speaker at Boise State's Annual Human Rights Celebration Jan. 21

Martin Luther King III will give a special public lecture as part of Boise State University’s annual Martin Luther King Jr./Human Rights Celebration in  January. King will speak at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 21, in the Student Union Jordan Ballroom on the second floor of the Student Union. Tickets are free and available only at the Student Union Information Desk beginning Dec. 13. Tickets ensure a seat for the lecture but seating will open for non-ticket holders at 6:45 p.m. Free parking will be available in the Student Union visitor lot and Taco Bell Arena/Stadium lot. A free reception to meet the speaker will follow in the Bishop Barnwell Room. The presentation will be American Sign Language and Spanish interpreted. Martin Luther King III is the oldest of four children of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. He graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta and is the former president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. President and CEO of the King Center in Atlanta, Ga., King’s dedication to promoting nonviolent action to rid the world of social, political and economic injustice has made him one of the nation’s most ardent advocates for the oppressed and disillusioned. Through the 1980s and ’90s, in addition to protesting injustice in South Africa and supporting freedom for Nelson Mandela, King addressed the moral and political dilemmas of Haiti, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. He has also spoken to the United Nations on behalf of people living with AIDS and conducted hearings that led to the passage of anti-racial profiling resolutions in the U.S. King’s address caps a week of activities ranging from a rally at the Capitol to films, workshops and a student poetry contest, all centered on the theme “Higher Unlearning.” A full schedule of events will be posted at sub.boisestate.edu/mlk later this month. -30- Contact: Rob Meyer, (208) 426-1224, rmeyer@boisestate.edu                                                                Media Contact: Kathleen Craven, University Relations, (208) 426-3275, kcraven@boisestate.edu