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Hendrix Office for Diversity and Inclusion Invites Hendrix Community to MLK Jr. Day and National Day of Racial Healing Events

CONWAY, Ark. (January 13, 2021)—The Hendrix College Office for Diversity and Inclusion invites the Hendrix community to engage with a statewide week-long schedule of events designed to share truth, deepen relationships, and build trust so citizens can have difficult conversations about how the social construct of race has perpetuated structural violence in Arkansas.

The 2021 Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Day of Service Virtual Celebration set for Monday, Jan. 18, is presented by the Arkansas MLK Commission. The commission encourages communities to embrace alternatives to violence and discover their common humanity, and offers programs designed to promote the tenets of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and honor his life and legacy.

Last year, Governor Asa Hutchinson became the first governor in the nation to issue a proclamation declaring the day following Martin Luther King Jr. Day to be a day of racial healing. On Jan. 19, 2021, the State of Arkansas will observe the sixth annual National Day of Racial Healing (NDORH). Descriptions, dates, times, and registration links for planned activities associated with NDORH are available at the NDORH 2020 Eventbrite page. Events include:

Day Zero (Monday, Jan. 18)

6:00 p.m.: The University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College will host MLK DAY 2021 featuring Dr. Michael Eric Dyson

Day One (Tuesday, Jan. 19)

9:30 a.m.: Press Conference and public reveal of gubernatorial and mayoral proclamations, followed by public debut of mayoral recital of state proclamation ending with Governor Hutchinson 

12:00 p.m.: University of Arkansas-Clinton School of Public Service's Center on Community Philanthropy will announce the recipients of the 2021 Advancing Equity Award

2:00 p.m.: National Livestreaming Event hosted by Baratunde Thurston and sponsored by W.K. Kellogg Foundation 

5:00 p.m.: The Collegiate Art of Racial Healing: H.E.A.L.E.D. through Hip Hop: We as a people have found creative expression a part of our freedom just as much as marching and rioting. From Spirituals to blues to Hip Hop, music has been a hidden code of communication and healing. In this session, Dr. Alexis Davis will guide us through the healing properties of Hip Hop and end with an interactive activity.

8:00 p.m. Shelter-in-Place Virtual Film Series NDORH 2021 Mini-Festival: “Imaginary Walls: A Documentary About Healing Racism” 

Day Two (Wednesday, Jan. 20)

12:00 p.m.: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences' College of Public Health will host a special Racial Healing Space 

5:00 p.m.: Lifting Their Names ceremony honoring the memory of the 47 unarmed Arkansans who died in police custody from 2015 to the present. 

7:00 p.m.: Shelter-in-Place Virtual Film Series NDORH 2021 Mini-Festival: APJMM Pulaski County Community Remembrance Project presents World Premiere of Little Rock native Korey Isbell's film “Vilified” about the 1927 lynchings of Lonnie Dixon & John Carter in Little Rock, followed by a panel discussion with descendants. 

Day Three (Thursday, Jan. 21)

6:00 p.m. APJMM Pulaski County Community Remembrance Project & University of Arkansas-Clinton School of Public Service will co-sponsor virtual community discussion on racial healing and restorative justice 

8:00 p.m.: Shelter-in-Place Virtual Film Series NDORH 2021 Mini-Festival: “Divided We Fall: Unity Without Tragedy” 

Day Four (Friday, Jan. 22)

9:30 a.m.: Press Conference on steps of Arkansas State Capitol to (1) announce the 28-day Arkansas Racial Equity Challenge, (2) introduce proposed legislation to establish a statewide Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation Commission, and (3) submit petition to fully exonerate ALL defendants of the Elaine Race Massacre 

7:00 p.m.: Shelter-in-Place Virtual Film Series NDORH 2021 Mini-Festival: “How to Love Your Enemy: A Restorative Justice Story”

About Hendrix College 

A private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu