AUSTIN, TexasA day of celebration in Austin honoring the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will begin at The University of Texas at Austin at 8 a.m., Monday, Jan. 17, with a welcoming ceremony near the Martin Luther King Jr. statue on the unieersity’s East Mall.ee
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Statue of Martin Luther King Jr. on the East Mall of The University of Texas at Austin campus.
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| Photo: Marsha Miller |
The 22nd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration is free and open to the public and is the starting event for the 2005 Community March in Austin, said Brenda Burt, director of the Multicultural Information Center, which is co-sponsoring the campus event with the university and the Austin Area Heritage Council.
While King’s birthday actually is on Saturday, Jan. 15, state agencies, including The University of Texas at Austin, will be closed on Monday, Jan. 17, in observance of Martin Luther King Day.
Burt said State Rep. Dawnna Dukes will be the grand marshal, leading participants after the ceremony from the campus to a 9 a.m. program at the state capitol and afterwards to a festival with food and music at Huston-Tillotson College.
Corey Tabor of Manor, an alumnus of The University of Texas at Austin and member of the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, will give the welcoming speech at the statue event. The statue is just west of the fountain near San Jacinto Boulevard at 23rd Street.
Dr. James Vick, the university’s vice president for student affairs, will offer official greetings from the university and talk about the history of the statue, which was erected Sept. 24, 1999.
The celebration at the Martin Luther King Jr. statue also will include singing and violin performances by music major Chelsey Green, and a presentation by the McCallum High School Drill Team. Terrence Denkins of Houston, a freshman liberal arts major, will give a student’s perspective about the presence of the Martin Luther King Jr. statue on campus and what it means to him.
Parking for participants in the statue event is available at various locations, including Disch-Falk Field near I-35 at 1300 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Capitol Metro buses will transport participants from the parking lots to the campus and later will offer transportation from Huston-Tillotson College back to the parking lots. The festival at Huston-Tillotson College is scheduled to end at 2 p.m.
Details about the 2005 Community March, related activities and parking sites may be seen on the Austin Area Heritage Council Web site. More information about the event at The University of Texas at Austin is available on the Multicultural Information Center Web site or by calling 512-232-2958.
For more information contact: Robert D. Meckel, Office of Public Affairs, 512-475-7847.
