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Donzaleigh Abernathy, acclaimed activist and author, goddaughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., delivered a heartfelt keynote at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s 42nd annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Luncheon on Wednesday, Jan. 22. The celebration included the presentation of SIUE’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Awards, moving performances by the SIUE Gospel Choir, the SIUE East St. Louis Performing Arts Program, and the SIUE Black Theatre Workshop.

Student Body President Barrett Larkin and Black Student Union President Peyton Gamble helped host the event, introducing speakers and award presentations. Abernathy’s poignant childhood memories of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and her parents, Rev. Dr. Ralph David Abernathy and Juanita Jones Abernathy, brought the audience closer in time to the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement.

An award ceremony took place before Abernathy’s address. The annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. awards honored community members, local youth and students for their contributions to justice and equality.

2025 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. SIUE Student Scholarship Recipient

• Albert Smith Jr., third-year, SIUE

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Humanitarian Award

• Paul Pitts, retired, former SIUE Assistant Chancellor for Compliance & Diversity
• Christine Ilewski Huelsmann, founder, Faces Not Forgotten Project

2025 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Local Youth Essay Award

• Ashlyn Dean, 10th grade, Freeburg Community High School

• Lilllian O’Donnell, 10th grade, Collinsville High School

• Emma Wojda, 12th grade, Belleville West High School

The Freedom School Servant Leader Awards followed, recognizing the efforts of individual community members who launched the SIUE Freedom School program. According to award presenter Tandra Taylor, PhD, executive director of the program, the Freedom School program is part of a larger national initiative that serves over 11,000 children in 36 states. It aims to empower children and families through literacy, following in the footsteps of civil rights activists. These awards highlight the dedication and growth of the recipients who underwent intensive training, worked with 50 middle school students from over 20 schools in the Metro-East area, and developed leadership skills. These recipients made a significant impact on the literacy and engagement of the participating students. Their efforts honor Dr. King's legacy by continuing the work of building a more equitable and literate society.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom School Servant Leader Award Recipients

• Joaquin Alexander, third year, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Amariah Carter, third year, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Amara Coburn, third year, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Omar Jackson, fourth year, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Makayla Mallon, graduate student, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Aniya Sykes, second year, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
• Courtney Walker, Inaugural Freedom School Site Coordinator
• A’nya Wilkes, alumna 24, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

Abernathy spoke next at the luncheon, sharing reflections on her father’s role in the movement, including his call to action after Rosa Parks’ arrest and his partnership with Dr. King. The two leaders formed a lasting friendship and became faces for the Civil Rights Movement. Abernathy, who referred to her godfather as Uncle Martin, recounted her parents’ sacrifices. The family home was bombed after the Montgomery Bus Boycott while her mother was pregnant with her and so began the 44 arrests of her father in the fight for equality.

“I thank God that Klansman was not smart, because if he would have been smarter he would have placed that bomb six inches closer to the gas line, the house would have gone up, my mother would have died, my sister would have died and I would have never been born,” said Abernathy.

Throughout Abernathy’s speech, she made several references to the countless “nameless” people that helped shape the Civil Rights Movement. Showing a photo of a woman, Abernathy told the story about how it was academics who were forgotten pioneers.

“This is Jo Ann Robinson, the English teacher at Alabama State who said to Ralph that we needed to boycott. A woman! She’s nameless in history but that’s the woman. These were university people that did this. My Dad was the Dean of Men at Alabama State. They were university people, just like you all are, who insisted change come.”

“Courage is not when you're brave and you're going on out there anyway, because you want to go,” said Abernathy. “Courage is when you are timid and you have this thought of the trepidation and you're not sure what you're going to do, but you summon up that strength inside of you, and you keep going anyway. That's courage.”

Abernathy painted a vivid picture of life during the Civil Rights Movement, from childhood performances for Dr. King to attending historic marches. A captivated audience listened as she recounted her father being by Dr. King’s side at the time of his assassination, a loss she continues to mourn deeply.

“The doctor came up to my Dad…said it would be an act of mercy if God takes him. [Dr. King]. My Dad said no. No, no, no, no, you got to take care of him. You have to help him, he has to live. And so the doctor went back over and worked…finally they came back and said listen, Reverend Abernathy, there is nothing we can do. So Daddy went over to him and he picked him up and cradled him in his arms because he loved him, and then his breathing got less and less, and then he breathed no more.”

Abernathy concluded her address with a call to action, urging attendees to vote, speak up for what’s right, and carry forward the stories of the movement as a responsibility to future generations to continue the fight for justice.

“So, now it’s on you all… fight for us. We are a just, we are good, we are kind, a loving people. Think about us, care about us, don’t let anybody pull us away…this is our home. Rise up and be better because we are Americans, we are the dream of democracy that people all over the world aspire to achieve. Be great Americans.”

SIUE is privileged to celebrate Abernathy, Dr. King, and the Civil Rights Movement. To further develop a commitment to their legacy at SIUE, a donation may be made to SIUE’s MLK Scholarship Fund.

PHOTOS: Composite by Howard Ash, Freedom School Servant Leader Award Recipients, Donzaleigh Abernathy