2011 Martin Luther King Jr. CelebrationFeaturing Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr.

Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr.

On Monday, January 17, 2011, Gustavus hosted the 2011 Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration featuring civil rights movement leader Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr.

Civil rights movement leader Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr. delivered the 2011 Martin Luther King Jr. Day Memorial Lecture at Gustavus Adolphus College on Monday, Jan. 17 in Christ Chapel.

LaFayette not only recalled stories from the 1960s when he played a key role in monumental events such as the Nashville sit-ins, the Freedom Rides, and the Selma, Alabama voting rights movement, but he also talked about the three years he spent at Gustavus in the mid 1970s as chairperson of the Consortium on Peace Research, Education and Development (CoPRED), and as the director of the College’s peace education program.

After speaking, LaFayette answered questions from the audience and gave Gustavus students advice on how to use nonviolent strategies to create social change.

Click here to read a Mankato Free Press story about LaFayette’s lecture.

Click here to view a photo gallery from the lecture.