Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Dear WesternU Students, Faculty, and Staff,

Today our university, along with our great nation, celebrates the birthday of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

As a preeminent institution of higher education in the health sciences in the United States, espousing the principles of humanism, it is apt that WesternU honor the legacy of such a visionary.

Dr.  King, a Baptist minister, and a prominent leader in the American civil rights movement, was born on January 15, 1929. As you may be aware, Dr. King was a strong advocate of the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi who promoted the use of nonviolent resistance to effect social change, achieve social justice, and support social determinants of health. In his infinite wisdom, Dr. King promoted nonviolence to end racial segregation in the United States. Well deservingly, Dr. King was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1964.

Perhaps, most recognized for his extraordinary 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech, in which he shared a vision that the United States would be freed from the shackles of segregation and racism, Dr. King, in fact, also advocated strongly for health equity, and for the elimination of health disparities in our country.

I express immense gratitude to all of you for your continued commitment to these very principles of freedom, equality, and justice for African Americans, and for all oppressed peoples, that have made Dr. King’s work so widely respected internationally.

I appreciate enormously the university’s commitment to the continued work toward racial equality, nonviolent social change, health equality, and the elimination of health disparities in our country.

Warmest Regards,
Robin