9–10:30am

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Keynote

Peter J. Gomes Chapel

Overview and Welcome: Rakiya Mohamed ’18; Matthew R. Auer, Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty; A. Clayton Spencer, President of Bates College; and James Reese, Associate Dean of Students for International Students Programs

Introduction of Keynote Speaker: Joseph Hall, Associate Professor of History

Keynote Address: The Half Life of Freedom
William Jelani Cobb

William Jelani Cobb is an associate professor of history at the University of Connecticut and a staff writer for The New Yorker. As a historian, he specializes in post-Civil War African American history, 20th-century American politics, and the history of the Cold War. As a journalist and commentator, Cobb is known for his examinations of issues around race, society, and politics. His books include The Substance of Hope: Barack Obama and the Paradox of Progress (Bloomsbury 2010) and To The Break of Dawn: A Freestyle on the Hip Hop Aesthetic (NYU Press 2007), a finalist for the National Award for Arts Writing. Cobb’s forthcoming book is titled Antidote to Revolution: African American Anticommunism and the Struggle for Civil Rights, 1931–1957.

Closing: James Reese, Associate Dean of Students

3:45pm

The Rev. Benjamin Elijah Mays Debate

Olin Concert Hall

This ever-popular event brings together students from Morehouse and Bates colleges in honor of the Rev. Benjamin E. Mays, Class of 1920, a Bates debater, longtime Morehouse president, and pioneer of the civil rights movement. This year’s motion: “To ameliorate racial discrimination in the criminal justice system, this house believes that police reform is more important than prison reform. ” Free but tickets required, available online or by calling 207-786-6400.