Walk the Walk

The Notre Dame family is invited to a Candlelight Prayer Service where all who gather will commemorate the life of Dr. King, celebrate the diversity that currently exists on our campus and examine our consciences with regard to our own contributions to making this community welcoming and inclusive. Post-event (complimentary) late-night breakfast will be provided at South Dining Hall.

The fifth annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Luncheon is sponsored by the Office of the President and the Oversight Committee on Diversity and Inclusion. Diane Nash will be the keynote speaker at this luncheon. Nash became a leader in the Civil Rights Movement in 1959 while a student at Fisk University. By the time she was 22, Nash was a Freedom Rider and had co-founded the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). She worked closely with Dr. King and played a pivotal role in the Selma Voting Rights Movement. Join students, faculty, and staff at this free but ticketed event.

Faculty and staff will receive information regarding ticket distribution from their department leaders. Students will be able to pick up tickets at the LaFortune Box Office beginning January 13. There will be shuttles available for transportation to/from the luncheon.

Members of the Notre Dame community — students, faculty and staff — who are not able to attend the campus-wide luncheon at the Joyce Center are invited to gather with friends and colleagues for lunch in the campus dining halls to continue the day’s conversations. Lunch is complimentary from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. with a Notre Dame ID.

Martin Luther King, Jr., said, "Everyone can be great, because everyone can serve." Students and faculty who want to find their path to service and civic engagement in South Bend are encouraged to encounter the more than 50 local organizations who will invite you into their work. Meet local social service organizations who can help you sign up for volunteering and community-engaged learning/research opportunities, governmental and nonprofit agencies who will share employment and internship opportunities, and arts/entertainment organizations who will help you celebrate South Bend. More information can be found here.

This event is sponsored by the Center for Social Concerns, ND Student Government, Alliance for Catholic Education, Saint Mary's College, and Holy Cross College.

Professor Darius A. Spieth's research restores attention to the life and work of Frank Hayden (1936-1988). Hayden was a Notre Dame graduate (MFA '59) and a leading African-American mid-century sculptor of the South. The uniqueness of Hayden’s art is defined by his place at the intersection of Catholic faith, the Civil Rights movement, and the combination of modernist aesthetics with solid craftsmanship. Spieth's richly illustrated talk presents a visual overview of Hayden’s most important sculptural works – executed in wood, bronze, and fiberglass – from the key decades of his career, ranging from the late 1950s to the late 1980s. Hayden loved his work to be accessible and to serve the public. Many of his sculptures, including some of the nation's first public monuments to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., can still be found in open spaces and churches in southern Louisiana, as well as in public and private collections.

This talk is free and open to all. The program is generously supported by Percy A. Pierre. 

The Klau Center for Civil and Human Rights will introduce a new project on Notre Dame stories of race. Designed to collect and archive stories from students, staff, and faculty, “With Voices True” creates a space to initiate dialogue and understanding across differences. The event will afford everyone a chance to explore the online platform and an opportunity to contribute to the collection by telling their own story. Presented in collaboration with the Gallivan Program in Journalism, Ethics, and Democracy and University Archives.

Join fellow art lovers in the galleries for in-depth conversations about great work of art. Guided by the group’s observations and insights, Snite Salons encourage close looking and thoughtful conversation with a different work each session. In conjunction with campus Walk the Walk week celebrations, the conversation will focus on Charles Moore's photograph Fire Hose Aimed at Young Demonstrator, Birmingham, Alabama from the Birmingham Campaign on May 3 in 1963. This work will only be on view during this program.