Come Together

My school in London has an assembly every morning of the week, but students only attend one day a week with their year group. So year 7 goes on Monday, year 8 on Tuesday and so on. The assembly, which has a different focus and message for the girls each week, is organized by a different member of staff each week. The same assembly is presented throughout the week, allowing all students a chance to see it. So that means if you're in charge of assembly, you give the same presentation five times in a row.

Fulbright has encouraged us to get involved in our schools and run assemblies, so I volunteered to organize one for my school. I wanted to speak to the girls about how to be peaceful and respectful, and so I decided to teach them about one of America's greatest role models when it comes to both of those virtues--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I had a feeling our girls would really be interested in learning more about Martin Luther King, Jr., and I was right. The assembly was a hit with the students, who were quiet and interested in his life and his messages. It also went over well with my colleagues and the senior leadership team, which was a big relief to me!  :)  Leading the assembly five times was a little daunting, but I'm so glad I did it. I was able to make connections to so many more students and share some of my country's history. And even though it isn't a pretty history, it is certainly something we can all learn from.

Assemblies are held in the school chapel. 

The start of my assembly.

And, in case you really want to read the whole thing, here's what I said (well a version of this that came out a little different each day!):

Good morning ladies. Many of you don’t know me, so let me just take a minute to introduce myself. My name is Miss Keagle, and I’m an American teacher here at La Retrait for just one year. I’m here as part of the Fulbright teaching exchange program. I’ve actually traded places with Miss H. for the year, so what that means is she is teaching at my school back home near Seattle and I am here at La Retraite.

Before our exchange started, Miss Hiltunen and I actually got to meet for a few days in Washington D.C., which is the capital city of the United States. Here’s a photo of Miss Hiltunen and I outside of the White House, which is where the president lives in Washington DC.

By a show of hands, has anyone been to Washington DC Excellent! Well in Washington D.C. there are many important things like government buildings, embassies and museums. But there are also a lot of really impressive monuments that have been built to celebrate important events and the lives of important people.

For example, here’s a photo of the Washington Monument, which is that big tall tower. In front of the Washington Monument is the reflecting pond and behind the reflecting pond is the monument to president Abraham Lincoln. 

President Lincoln freed the African American slaves back in the late 1800s and he’s one of our most beloved presidents. You might be wondering why I’m telling you all of this. Let me explain.

I’ve been doing a lot of reflection lately, especially during this Lenten season, which is a time of prayer, peace, love and service.  And I’ve decided to talk to you girls today about being peaceful and peace loving. February was actually Black History Month in America and its made me think a lot about an important man who really encompasses what it means to sacrifice, to be reflective, to be of service to others and above all else, to be peaceful. He also happens to have a monument dedicated to him in Washington D.C. The man I’m talking about is Martin Luther King, Jr.

Here’s a photo of his monument that I took in August while visiting D.C.

You can see he has been carved out of this large rock, a stone of hope, they say, carved from a mountain of despair. Here’s his monument from another angle.

Surrounding his monument are some of his famous quotes engraved into the marble walls. This next slide is my favorite Dr King quote: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that.”

See King really believed in the Christian value of loving your neighbor and even your enemy. He honestly believed that through love and respect and peace, we can change the world and make the world a better place for each of us. And he gave his life in service to this belief.

I’d actually like to tell you a little more about the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. He was a remarkable human being and I believe we can learn a lot from King about how to approach the people and things that cause challenges in our lives.  

Dr. King was born on 15^th Jan. 1929 in Alabama. Both his father and grandfather were Baptist preachers, and one day King would follow in their footsteps, become a preacher himself. After high school, King went on to attend several universities and earn multiple degrees, including a doctorate degree, which is the highest academic honor you can earn in America. He later married his life, Coretta Scott, and they had four children, two boys and two girls.

In order to explain Dr. King’s involvement in the civil rights movement, I need to tell you a little history. Although the slaves were freed in the late 1800s, African Americans still didn’t have the same equal rights as white Americans. In fact, laws nicknamed the Jim Crow laws, were actually passed to keep African Americans separate from white Americans. Here’s a picture of segregated drinking fountains. These Jim Crow laws said that Africans Americans didn’t have the right to vote and had to use separate public facilities than white Americans. That meant African Americans had separate drinking fountains, public toilets, schools, restaurants and even cinemas. African Americans had to sit at the back of public busses and were required by law to give up their seat to white Americans.  

The Civil Rights Movement, which is the struggle African Americans undertook for equal rights in America, really began on 1^st December 1955 when Rosa Parks, who was coming home from a long day at work, quietly refused to give up her seat on a bus for a white person. . Parks was arrested and convicted of breaking the Jim Crow laws of segregation. Here’s a photo of Parks taken upon her arrest and one of Dr. King. Park’s courage moved others to take action. With Martin Luther King Jr. as their leader, a group of African Americans in Montgomery organized a bus boycott. For 381 days, they refused to ride the public bus in a peaceful protest against segregation. In December 1956, the US Supreme Court, the highest court in America, ruled that the segregation of busses was unconstitutional, and so they integrated the busses, which means white people and African Americans could now sit together and wherever they chose on the bus. This began an era of non-violent protests in support of equal civil rights for African Americans. And Martin Luther King was the leader of this movement.

King led demonstrations and marches and sit ins across the southern states, encouraging African Americans to stand up for the rights they had always been so unfairly denied. 

Here you can see some of protestors on a peaceful march. Look at all the different causes they are fight for. These basic civil rights that you and I take for granted African Americans were denied for a long time.  Through it all, King encouraged his supporters to seek peace, justice and brotherhood. He was very much against violent protests and believed the only way forward in the movement was through peace.

Often times, though, the police were violent in their attacks against protestors, turning loose aggressive dogs or even water hoses on protestors and often arresting lots of people at each demonstration. Still, King stood strong and maintained his peaceful position, challenging others to turn away from violence as well.  

It’s easy to seek revenge when we’ve been harmed, easy to let your thoughts of an eye for an eye take over your mind and your heart. But King never waivered. Even in the face of violent oppression. 

If anyone had a reason to turn violent, it was Martin Luther King. He was arrested 20 times during different demonstrations, yet he never got aggressive. He was violently assaulted at least four times, yet he didn’t turn to violence himself. And his house, where his family, his children, lived, was even bombed in 1956 right after the bus boycott and yet he didn’t seek revenge. Instead, he fought on in his own peace-loving way, through demonstrations, marches and speeches that brought tears to his listener’s eyes. 

King’s most famous speech, his I Have a Dream speech, was given to a peaceful crowd of more than 250,000 Americans of different races and backgrounds. He gave this speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial facing out to a crowd stretching all the way back to the Washington Monument. This inspirational speech is one of the most effective, powerful speeches given in history. I’d like to share just a brief clip with you.

"I Have a Dream"

Tragically, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in 1968. He was shot and killed while standing on a balcony at a hotel in Memphis Tennessee.  Losing such a courageous and peaceful man in such a violent way was a terrible tragedy. And now that Dr. King has passed, it’s up to you and me to make sure his legacy lives on everywhere in the world.

Dr King made many remarkable speeches and wrote some very profound things.  So I’d like to share with you a few of my favorite quotes from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Please think about them carefully as I read them to you. I hope at least one of these quotes speaks to your soul and your heart and inspires you.

Dr. King never saw his dream fully realized but you can live it out for him every day of your life. Choose love not hate. Choose acceptance not rejection. Chose to serve not just to take. Share your love, share your peace and serve meaningfully. 

I would like to invite you to join me in a prayer today. Please read this along with me if you’d like to join in.