Actualizing power of 1

This month, Americans from all walks of life are getting ready to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a public holiday. We are thankful to President Ronald Reagan, who signed a bill making Dr. King’s birthdate the 10th federal holiday. Born Jan. 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Ga., Dr. King would have been 80 years old this year.

Monday, Jan. 19 is the public holiday that is to be deemed “A day on! Not a day off.” 
                     
The 2009 King Day celebration has as its focus the slain civil rights leader’s contention: “The Power of One: Taking action in a time of challenge and controversy.” The theme encourages us to move beyond our personal comfort zones and take action to redress challenges and controversies of our time.

It is commendable that the city of Bloomington and Indiana University have teamed up with Ivy Tech as well as other area educational institutions in observing this holiday through various programmatic activities and initiatives.

Additionally, the IU School of Optometry is chipping in to provide free eye exams for faculty, staff and students, while community members who have no access to eye care will get similar free treatment as well as eyeglasses. A scheduled mini-fair for elementary and middle school students is expected to focus on friendship, education, diversity and the teachings of Dr. King, or what King scholars would call “Kingian principles.”

For civic dialogue, there is expected to be the “Unity Summit,” which is the annual interactive diversity education program. The King Day Essay, coordinated by Dr. Laura Plummer, provides undergraduate and graduate students with an opportunity to explore the intellectual side of Dr. King’s philosophy and actions.

Indeed, this year’s theme is particularly fitting for our nation as we face unprecedented economic challenges, the loss of lives and the socioeconomic toll of our involvement in two wars, unfavorable international opinion, continuing environmental problems, increasing gender disparities and low public morale.
At the same time, the theme reflects the indomitable spirit of Americans that was also evident in President-elect Obama’s winning campaign theme: “Yes We Can.”

His campaign inspired individual Americans of all races, ages, genders, parties and social backgrounds to move out of their comfort zones. An unprecedented number of Americans voted for the first time, voted across party lines, moved beyond preconceived notions about race and gender, donated money and collaborated with others to elect our nation’s first African-American president. What a wonderful exhibition of the power of one, as it rippled throughout our land and country.

Yet, if America is going to regain its stature of economic, political and moral prominence throughout the world, it will take more than one election or a single day of volunteering and reflection. Rather, all of us should use the 2009 King Day as a way of reflecting about the permanent changes that we as individuals can make in our attitudes, spending patterns, spiritual lives, social networks, behavior and the way we engage the environment. As individual Americans, we must exemplify the change that we wish to see in our society, and we can do it because of the power that lies within all of us.