MLK Day Celebration

Acclaimed poet and activist Nikky Finney paid tribute to the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by honoring the generations of Black women who nurtured, educated and inspired King and countless others through what she calls the "motherload of knowledge." Finney was the keynote speaker at Vanderbilt University’s Jan. 17 virtual commemoration. Read More

Karl A. Racine, attorney general for the District of Columbia, will deliver Vanderbilt Law School's 2022 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Lecture on Monday, Jan. 31, beginning at 12:30 p.m. CT via Zoom. The lecture is free, but advanced registration is required to attend. Read More

Ethiopian American novelist Dinaw Mengestu, known for his powerful and personal depictions of the immigrant experience and perspectives on the American dream, will be the keynote speaker for Vanderbilt University’s 2021 Martin Luther King Jr. Day commemorative event on Monday, Jan. 18. Read More

Noted civil rights leader James Lawson, the keynote speaker for Vanderbilt's 2016 MLK Commemoration, told a capacity audience that the American people must choose if the country is to move into a true democracy with equality, freedom and justice for all. Read More

The Rev. James Lawson, whom Martin Luther King Jr. called “the leading nonviolence theorist in the world,” will deliver the keynote address at Vanderbilt University’s MLK Day celebration Monday, Jan. 18. The theme for the commemoration is “Apathy to Action: Activism, Allyship and Anti-Racism.” Read More