MLK Day Inverted Pyramid

Emory, VA - MLK Day here at Emory & Henry College isnt a day off, but a day on

according to flyers that promoted this event. John Holloway, the new Vice President of

Student life and Student Success and Dean of Inclusion, delivered this years keynote

address.

Holloway expressed his intention to assemble a group of eager staff, students, and faculty

to join a social justice education program called the Intergroup Dialogues Project, or IDP.

EHC sophomore student Kaulil King was in attendance of the keynote address and stated

that he was very impressed with Holloways speech.

King mentioned that he came to the keynote mainly to receive his lyceum credit and to

pay homage to the great Dr. Martin Luther King. By the end of the keynote speech, King

says he was inspired by VP Holloway and wanted to be more inclusive and involved on

campus.

When asked would he join the IDP program, he mentioned that he Doesnt know as of
now, but you never know. Kaulil seemed very excited and inspired by our new VP, but

not everyone was too impressed.

EHC Junior Johnny McClean felt as though there was too much hype surrounded by

the entire address. It seemed more like a publicity stunt rather than a genuine event for

MLK Day, McClean said.

He went on to explain that he felt as though the keynote had more of an emphasis on

publicizing the event rather than the content of what was being said at the event.

McClean mentioned that he thought this keynote address was going to be more about

MLK and the impact hes had on the lives of others.

He further explained that he does not know how well the IDP program will do because he

did not like the way that it was presented, but says he is willing to give it time.

There were also many different breakout sessions after the address was

concluded. One breakout session that I attended was the discussion of How To Combat

Prejudice by psychology professor Chris Qualls.

He explained that prejudice is a prior judgment an individual has towards someone or

something at first glance.

He further explained that prejudice is an emotion and discrimination was the actual act of

limiting another group.

According to Qualls, individuals who possess a high level of Authoritarianism are more

likely to think in a prejudice manner. These individuals have an high compliance with

authority and they question those who don't comply.

Tactics used to explain how to combat prejudice was to hang around those who are

different and to have equal status among groups.