Clayton Young|@smartguy_92
A collection of children's books dedicated to Dr. Martin Luthor King, Jr.
Photo credit: Clayton Young, IU Bloomington
Bloomington- The Monroe County Public Library (MCPL) celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day yesterday with events geared toward all age groups.
Bloomington’s library has celebrated MLK day since 1997. In the last five years, has transitioned to all-day events. MCPL works with educators to design MLK Day events for children of all age groups.
Ginny Hosler, a full-time librarian at MCPL, said the purpose behind the MLK events is to promote the notions and ideas that resonate with both the library and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and to provide free and equitable access to these events.
The library events started at 9:30 a.m. with storytime events and crafts honoring the legacy of King, followed by a performance by the Bloomington Peace Choir.
“The whole idea behind the [Bloomington] Peace Choir is. . . how can we share peace within ourselves, within our groups. . . within the entire world. There’s a concept that says ‘if we are peaceful ourselves, that’s where it starts.’ So that pretty much jives with Martin Luther King’s message” Phyllis Wickliff, director of the Bloomington Peace Choir, said.
Phyllis Wickliff, director of the Bloomington Peace Choir, provides piano backing to the Choir’s performance
Photo Credit: Clayton Young IU Bloomington
The Choir performed a short concert with songs relating to King’s themes of justice and peace.
After the Choir performance, local author and a professor emeritus at Indiana University, Carol-Anne Hossler, discussed her book “Dr. King, The Rabbi, and Me”, a nonfiction piece about Hossler’s upbringing during the Civil Rights movement and the experience of hearing Dr. King speak in a nearby town.
“I felt a little bit like an outsider, so.... I watched the CBS nightly news because Walter Cronkite was on. . . and oftentimes he was covering stuff that was going on in the South,” Hossler said.
Hossler didn’t connect personally with the Civil Rights movement until the 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing on September 15, 1963, where four girls were killed following a planted bomb under the church stairs.
“These girls were in their church choir. I sang in choir that Sunday morning. . . These girls were 14 and 11 years old, my age. . . That was the day. . . I understood that my skin color gave me an advantage and protected me,” Hossler said.
However, some attendees thought that the MCPL could do better with diversity-focused events that deal with the representation. Jessica Kelwaski, a concerned local parent, said she was hoping to see the diverse community of Monroe County better represented for her children and nephews who attended the morning events.
After being asked about the lack of diversity within the Bloomington Peace Choir, Wickliff offered some insight into the Choir’s recruitment process.
“That’s something that we’ve talked about a lot over the years. . .’How do we get diversity within our choir?’ We advertise at the University. We have advertised at churches in the past. We try to advertise and talk it up in all kinds of diverse groups, hoping to get more diversity in the choir and it just hasn’t happened,” Wickliff said.
Despite the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, the Monroe County Public Library was still able to preserve and spread the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to the children and the community.
“I can’t think about my middle school years and not remember Martin Luther King, Jr. All the times he fought for equality and justice for all people,” Hossler said, quoting her childhood diary referenced in her book.
Attached is a webpage for all MCPL community events: https://mcpl.evanced.info/signup/list?lib=0&nd=90&df=list&et=2%2c3%2c5
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