Tri-State University’s 16th annual Martin Luther King, Jr.-Black History Celebration will take place on Thursday, February 2, at 7 p.m. in Best Hall 229.  The night will include free refreshments, entertainment, and a keynote address, “Difficult Days Ahead: From Protest in Montgomery to Peace in America.”  The public is welcome to attend.

Tim Lake, currently the Visiting Owen Dustin Professor of English at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind., will deliver the keynote speech.  The speech comes from Dr. King’s last public address before his assassination in Memphis, Tenn.

“I hope to reflect upon King’s legacy of ethical leadership in pursuit of expanding democracy,” said Lake.  “As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Protest, it is appropriate to ask what lessons might we learn for our current project of promoting the virtues of democracy in the 21st century.”

A native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Lake earned his Ph.D. at Bowling Green State University (Ohio) in American Cultures Studies with a concentration in political philosophy.  Lake also spent the summer of 2001 at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project at Sanford University where he worked on the book “Threshold of a New Decade, Volume V,” the latest publication of King’s papers.

The evening’s entertainment will include presentations from the TSU Multicultural Student Organization and the inspirational sounds of The Voices of the Unity Youth Choir.  Directed by Marshall White, the youth choir will sing a variety of upbeat music including gospel, contemporary Christian, inspirational, hip hop, jazz, and blues.  Based in Fort Wayne, the choir is part of the Unity Performing Arts Foundation Inc., a newly-organized performing arts organization.  The group offers a unique collection of soulful music, dance, drama, creative writing, oratory, and singing under a single umbrella.

For more information or if you plan to attend, please contact Deborah McHenry, director of student success and retention and program organizer, at 260.665.4509.