On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, community members and students alike gathered to continue a 36-year-long tradition of marching alongside the MLK Living Legacy Committee to the Idaho State Capitol.
“Specifically in our generation, there’s so much going on and I feel like our voices aren’t always heard,” said Layla Abdulhameed, a student working with first-generation students at the Student Connections Center. “When things like this are posted, it’s such a good time to be able to go out and have this opportunity to show what we support and stand [up] for ourselves.”
Abdulhameed passed out t-shirts to those participating in the march, designed by GIMM major Amber Taggart. The back of the shirt highlights the committee’s message, reading “Building beloved community in the face of division.”
In a procession from the Student Union Building to the Capitol Building, Boiseans looked on at the street spectacle and cars honked in support as protesters chanted: “Lies and threats will not divide the people standing side by side” and “He had a dream, we have a dream, we are the dream.”
Once the group arrived at the steps of the Capitol Building, speeches were held by Boise State student leaders and community members fighting for civil and human rights.
“We are challenged today, not to look at our diversities and obstacles as sources of division, rather we are challenged to transform our diversity into a platform of opportunity; to build a more perfect human and strong community across this nation,” said in a speech from Rev. Dr. Jonathan McReynolds. “It is not that we are attempting to identify with a singular social or cultural norm, as we are a diverse society, and we have found strength in our diversity for generations … Rather, we are attempting to discover a place of social synergy within our diversity to build a stronger community.”
Other speakers expressed the unifying factor of their mission as they addressed the students and community members willing to listen and march for the cause.
“We gather in a moment where institutions and even governments are making concentrated efforts to silence or erase work like ours — they hope we will grow tired,” said Political Science major Diego Tapia. “They hope we will lose our heart and lose our passion. But I have bad news for them — we will never tire out.”
Signs made at home by march-goers or that morning in the Student Union Building shared similar sentiments to Tapia’s words, stressing the importance of voices not being erased amongst the large crowd. Signs that read, “Protect people, not power” and “Love, not hate, makes America great”, were few among the sea of colorful posters.
“The critical question for us is ‘how do we build the beloved community in the face of this deeply entrenched division?’” Raquel Reyes, leader of PODER of Idaho asked. “It is easier to dismiss a person’s argument, pain or humanity when they are reduced to a caricature or political label. Radical empathy … does not mean that you have to agree with their conclusions, but it demands that you understand their starting point. What are their fears? What are their lived experiences? When we see the shared humanity beneath the label, the wall of division begins to crack.”
MLK Living Legacy Committee Delegate Chair Marliegh Nabonne highlighted the impact that other civil rights activists have had on inspiring younger generations and keeping the persistent fight going; Rosa Parks, Claudette Colvin, Coretta Scott King, Angela Davis and Malcolm X being named.
“If this year’s taught me anything, it is that tomorrow is not promised, and that there is such [a] thing as too late,” Nabonne adds, the emotion coming through her voice as she chokes up.” But for every ‘too late’, there’s a ‘what’s next.’ We have seen what happens when fear dictates the way people vote and how they treat one another. I challenge you to go beyond fear.”
The Martin Luther King Jr. Living Legacy Committee aims to inspire students to fight for what they believe in times of distress. Their mission of defending diversity is a fight speakers and attendees echoed throughout the day, making waves in the crowd of hundreds while doing so.
“Community just doesn’t stop outside of our organizations or titles, it shows up when we speak up for others who are being targeted or stay silent because it feels easy,” said Multicultural Greek Council President Israel “Izzy” Rivera. “If we are truly going to honor Dr. King’s legacy, we have to fight for our community and stand up for it, especially now.”
