Observing MLK Day in the Classroom
The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington, DC. Photo credit here . Every year, when we have a long weekend for Martin Luther King, Jr. day, we wonder how to address the holiday. Issues of inequality cannot simply be explained and dismissed in one day, and simplistic or one-dimensional descriptions of Dr. King don’t do him justice. We also try to incorporate social justice education into our classroom everyday, as oppression, prejudice, and discrimination are always relevant to teaching and learning about the world. We often find that our students think that racism and segregation were a problem, and Dr. King “fixed” that problem and everyone is equal now. They make statements about how everyone is equal now and Dr. King caused that through nonviolence and an inspiring speech. So we start by asking students what they know about Dr. King. Younger students in particular focus