[Wsssc] The fierce urgency of now: An invitation as we remember the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

[Lauren Hibbs]

Dear WSSSC Colleagues,

As many of you prepare your own messages, I write to share the below message from the SBCTC Equity and Diversity team in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Sincerely,
[Compass]
Lauren Hibbs, Ed.D
Director, Student Services
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
lhibbs at sbctc.edu* o: 360-704-4334 *
sbctc.edu<https://www.sbctc.edu/> * Twitter: @SBCTCWashington<https://twitter.com/SBCTCWashington> * Facebook: @WASBCTC<https://www.facebook.com/wasbctc/>

SBCTC Vision:

"Leading with racial equity, our colleges maximize student potential and transform lives within a culture of belonging that advances racial, social, and economic justice in service to our diverse communities."



From: SBCTC EDI Team <edi at sbctc.edu>
Sent: Friday, January 13, 2023 1:42 PM
To: SBCTC All Staff <SBCTCAllStaff at sbctc.edu>
Cc: Melissa Williams <mwilliams at sbctc.edu>; Sophia Agtarap <sagtarap at sbctc.edu>
Subject: The fierce urgency of now: An invitation as we remember the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.


Dear SBCTC Community-



The holiday marking the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday is again upon us. Some will listen to his speeches and sermons, others will read his writings, and for others it will be another day off.



Amidst national conversations about multiple and intersecting crises of climate, water and land rights, housing, healthcare, mental health, and student debt, how do we revisit the quotes, writings, and footage of Dr. King in ways that help us live the legacy of this iconic leader who was formed by the people and realities of the movement for civil rights?



Dr. King often spoke about the Beloved Community-a phrase coined by philosopher-theologian Josiah Royce. In his imagining of the Beloved Community, Dr. King cast a global vision in which all people experienced care that was absent of war, poverty, hunger, and racism. Dr. King acknowledged that realizing this vision must involve an intersectional and interdisciplinary approach that no one sector or one person could or should create in isolation.



On two occasions, Dr. King spoke of the "fierce urgency of now." In his 1963 "I Have a Dream"<https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety> speech at the Lincoln Memorial, and in his "Beyond Vietnam"<https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkatimetobreaksilence.htm> sermon four years later, Dr. King reflected on the idea of being too late. "There is an invisible book of life" he spoke, "that faithfully records our vigilance or our neglect."



When it comes to our organization's vision to lead with racial equity, will our work be recorded as vigilance or neglect?



Today, Dr. King continues to invite us to respond to the fierce urgency of now. Ushering in the Beloved Community requires swift action coupled with intentional and thoughtful understanding of the relationships we build and the systems we create and in which we operate.



Receive this invitation to imagine what it would take to build the Beloved Community individually and collectively: How do we start here at SBCTC in our departments, across the agency, and throughout the 34 community and technical colleges to create and inhabit the Beloved Community?



We look forward to more opportunities in the coming months to explore these questions together.



Onward,



Sophia and Melissa

SBCTC Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion



[Title: SBCTC logo - Description: Compass]Sophia Kristina R. Agtarap (she/siya)
Director, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
sbctc.edu<https://www.sbctc.edu/> * Twitter: @SBCTCWashington<https://twitter.com/SBCTCWashington> * Facebook: @WASBCTC<https://www.facebook.com/wasbctc/>



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