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Release Date: 
Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Dr. Kalvin Harvell keynotes MLK event at Ohio University

Dr. Harvell with marchers
Dr. Kalvin Harvell (glasses, third from left) marched with Alpha Phi Alpha brothers during the annual march at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. (Photo courtesy Erin Burk, The Post, Athens).

Dr. Kalvin Harvell, HFC Sociology instructor and coordinator of the Black Male and QUEENS Focus Group, was the keynote speaker at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day event at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. The university is Dr. Harvell's alma mater. A march has taken place annually at Ohio for 51 years, beginning the year after Dr. King's assassination (which took place April 4, 1968).

As at many institutions nationwide on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a march was a centerpiece of the event. The march was led by the brothers of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, many of whom marched arm-in-arm to honor Dr. King, the ongoing work of civil rights, and each other.

Dr. Harvell was the keynote speaker at the event.

"One of the most important things that Dr. King talked about later in his life is of the two Americas, which means that it's important to celebrate him, so we can be attentive to the fact there's still unfinished business in terms of his dream,” said Harvell. “A lot of people assume that the journey was complete on April 4, 1968, because King was assassinated. But he himself said, ‘I may not get there with you, but we as a people will get to the promised land.’”

After he returned to HFC, Dr. Harvell said, "I gave students a charge to continue the unfinished business of Dr. King. Although I received a great deal of positive feedback, the most meaningful responses came from two young women who said they are now planning to go to graduate school because of how moved they were by the clarity of my talk!"

Read the complete story and see more photos at The Post, Athens.