Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation 2025

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.听
Convocation 2025

"Freedom Intersections"

Thursday, Jan. 16
2 p.m. 鈥 4:30 p.m.
Macky Auditorium

Featuring keynote speaker Isabel Wilkerson, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and bestselling author of 鈥淐aste鈥 and 鈥淭he Warmth of Other Suns鈥

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Registration closes on Jan. 2. Please register early to reserve your seat.听

Join CU 麻豆影院 for a free event open to students, staff, faculty and local community members to commemorate one of the country鈥檚 most influential civil rights leaders: the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Acclaimed journalist Isabel Wilkerson will talk about caste systems around the world, how they become empowered, and what it might be like to disrupt them. Wilkerson will also answer questions and sign copies of her books.

Freedom Intersections

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister, activist and political philosopher, was one of the most influential and celebrated civil rights leaders in U.S. history. Before his April 4, 1968, murder in Memphis, King became the youngest man to win the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 35. His iconic听 and his听 continue to resonate across multiple generations today.

鈥淔reedom intersections,鈥 the theme of the 2025 convocation, will guide a community exploration of how global power dynamics and solidarity have intersected over the decades to propel current and past freedom movements, including the U.S. civil rights movement.

Participants will also be invited to consider the following excerpt from Dr. King鈥檚 鈥淟etter from a Birmingham Jail鈥 within the present-day context: 鈥淚njustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly.鈥

Isabel Wilkerson

Isabel Wilkerson

Isabel Wilkerson (photo by Leslie Andrews)

Isabel Wilkerson is the author of the bestsellers 鈥淭he Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America鈥檚 Great Migration鈥 and 鈥淐aste: The Origins of Our Discontents.鈥 She won a Pulitzer Prize in 1994, becoming the first Black woman to earn the accolade for feature writing and individual reporting.

In 2016, former President Barack Obama awarded Wilkerson the National Humanities Medal for "championing the stories of an unsung history."

鈥淭he Warmth of Other Suns鈥 won the National Book Critics Circle Award.听More than 30 publications listed the book among its best of the year, including the听Los Angeles Times,听The Washington Post, and听The New York Times, which also named the book one of the 100 best books of the 21st century. In 2020,听Time magazine named 鈥淐aste鈥 nonfiction book of the year, and Oprah Winfrey chose it for her book club.

A Howard University alumna, Wilkerson has taught at Princeton, Emory, Boston and other universities across the United States, Europe and Asia. Learn more about the author鈥檚 work by visiting the听.

Registration

Please to ensure seating availability. More information about seating, security and other event details will be available through the registration process. The 2025 convocation is free to all CU 麻豆影院 students, staff and faculty and local community members.

Parking

Details coming soon.听

Regional Events

  • , the only one of its kind in the country and celebrating its 41st anniversary, Jan. 20, Civic Center Park in downtown Denver. Opening ceremony starts at 9:30 a.m. and the Marade step-off starts at 10:45 a.m. The event includes a closing ceremony and the Dr. King Legacy Bike Ride.