ISU asks for community to ‘reignite the dream’

For MLK Day this year, Idaho State University called on the community to take a more active approach to honor the civil rights leader.

Around 1 p.m., ISU students, faculty and staff and Pocatello community members kicked off the MLK celebrations loud on the streets.

The crowd got quieter when they got to the Stephens Performing Arts Center, where numerous speakers urged the crowd to recognize the issues in the country’s culture and the proponent for changing them.

Jacqualine Thomas, the president of Pocatello NAACP branch, said she recognizes the progressive changes in our culture, especially since the U.S. has elected their first black president.

However, Thomas still asked the question, “has much changed for blacks?”

“We have to step up as a nation and be honest with ourselves,” she said. “Come to the reality that there is still prejudices in our nation and it’s time for it to stop.”

ISU student and NAACP College president Stephone Jordan had a similar message. In his speech, he shared his feelings of being a minority in Idaho.

For him, things will change when everyone comes together.

“There’s no reason to be afraid of a racial group or a religious group. Everybody does not fit one mold,” Jordan said.

The closing message for the day was to do something for your communities.

ISU’s Diversity Resource Center organized the events.