A member of the exonerated Central Park Five and a faculty member who directed and produced a documentary about the Flint water crisis will be keynote speakers during a week of events at Grand Valley State University that commemorate the life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Yusef Salaam will participate in a silent march on campus then give a presentation in the Fieldhouse Arena at 2 p.m. on Jan. 20. Salaam was 15 years old when he and four other teenagers were wrongly accused and convicted of raping a woman in New York City’s Central Park.
The sentences for the Central Park Five were overturned in 2002 after DNA testing and a confession from a convicted murderer. Salaam had spent nearly seven years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.
Two documentaries, including 2019’s “When They See Us” by Ava DuVernay, detailed the case, convictions and life after prison for Salaam and the others. He now spends his time as an activist and lecturer, discussing the failings of the criminal justice system and human rights.
• Cedric Taylor, associate professor of sociology at Central Michigan University, will give a presentation January 22 at 4:30 p.m. in the Kirkhof Center, Grand River Room.
Taylor is the writer, director and producer of “Nor Any Drop to Drink: The Flint Water Crisis.” The 2018 documentary has been screened nationally and internationally. Born in Jamaica, Taylor is a public sociologist who employs film, visual media and storytelling to engage the wider community in conversations around racism and social justice.
• The Community Service Learning Center will host MLK Jr. Day of Service and Solidarity on January 25 from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Students are encouraged to register for the service day online at gvsu.edu/service. Participants will hear from a speaker then participate in service projects with area partners. Transportation to and from campus is included.
The keynote presentations are free and open to the public. More details about Grand Valley’s Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Week are online at gvsu.edu/mlk.
