North Central College recognizes civil rights leader

When North Central College first honored Martin Luther King Jr. Day, students read excerpts from his speeches as their peers rushed to class.

Now that humble gathering has mushroomed into a weeklong series of events, luring director Spike Lee and scholar Cornel West for past speeches.

And the student behind that first official tribute in 1990 will return to the Naperville campus to remember how it all started.

“It was powerful,” said the Rev. Dr. Tracy Smith Malone, a 1990 alumna. “That was the beginning of a great movement.”

Malone, the Chicago southern district superintendent of the Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church, helped launch the tribute as former president of the college’s minority student association.

She’ll speak at a prayer breakfast at 7 a.m. Monday, Jan. 16, in the Harold and Eva White Activities Center, 325 E. Benton Ave. Her inspiration? King’s 1954 sermon, “Transformed Nonconformist,” laced with calls for social activism in a time of complacency.

In the sermon, King noted that many white people opposed segregation but failed to take a stand for fear of acting alone.

“Be a shaper of history,” said Malone, echoing King’s plea. “Everyone has something in them that can have an impact.”

The Rev. Lynn Pries, the college’s chaplain, also will lead a prayer at the conclusion of the hourlong breakfast, expected to attract 200 people.

For Pries, the breakfast celebrates a rich legacy of racial justice at the college, highlighting King’s visit in 1960 and the group of students who marched and championed civil rights in Selma, Ala., in 1965.

“We have that opportunity in the future to make those decisions that continue to change the world,” Pries said.

The centerpiece of the week is a multimedia presentation by radio and television host Tavis Smiley.

He will examine American culture through four pillars of the African American experience at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19, in Pfeiffer Hall.

“He’s not afraid to express his opinion,” said Dorothy Pleas, the college’s director of multicultural affairs. “He’s not afraid to tackle difficult issues.”

The week concludes with infectious, passionate performances by college choirs in the Gospel Extravaganza at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, in Pfeiffer Hall.

Tickets for the events are available at (630) 637-7469 or at northcentralcollege.edu/showtix.

And when Malone meets students, she’ll urge them to be bold leaders. Like the students reading the King speeches. Like transformed nonconformists.

“We made it happen,” Malone said. “You be that one to start and others will come along.”