MATC hosts celebration honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) --- Ahead of the federal holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Milwaukee Area Technical College is celebrating what would have been Dr. King's 96th birthday.
MATC hosted its annual MLK celebration on Thursday, Jan. 15.. This year's theme is "Building a Beloved Community." Michael Rogers, MATC Interim Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion spoke about the importance of honoring the civil rights leader each year.
"Dr. King's legacy is still something we need to think about. Many of the things that he fought for we still have a lot of work to go," Rogers said.
Dozens of students, staff, and community members came together to enjoy music, spoken word, and remarks from students and leaders during the program.
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson was also in attendance and spoke about how Dr. King's legacy has paved the way for him and other like him to hold positions in leadership.
"Dr. King courageously fought for justice and equality and his work is why African Americans today can sit in classrooms and learn alongside their peers, assume careers and build futures and indeed why African Americans in a city like Milwaukee can elect its first Black mayor in the city...and not just first Black mayor, a whole host of African Americans who hold high office," Mayor Johnson said.
Rogers said this celebration is all about reigniting the fighting spirit of dr. King in order to continue building and protecting our communities.
"I think Milwaukee plays a key role in effecting that positive change that Dr. King fought for so that we can live in a community that can move past segregation and division," he said.
MLK Day officially became a holiday back in the 1980's, but it wasn't fully recognized by all 50 states until the 2000's.
This year's holiday will be observed on Monday, Jan. 20th.