Today we celebrate the life, accomplishments, and vision of Martin Luther King, Jr., but I think we should also celebrate his wife, Coretta Scott King. Not only did she work alongside her husband throughout his civil rights campaign, but she continued and expanded this campaign for decades after her husband’s assassination in 1968. \u00a0She established the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change, spoke out on behalf of gay rights, and played a leadership role in the struggle to end apartheid. \u00a0She also led the successful efforts to make her husband’s birthday and national holiday. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n
I feel connected to Coretta Scott King. \u00a0She began her college career at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, where she studied music. \u00a0I, too, began my college career at Antioch College, where I studied musical composition among other subjects. \u00a0She transferred out of Antioch and moved to New England to study at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. \u00a0I transferred out of Antioch and moved to New England to study at Franconia College in New Hampshire. \u00a0While at the New England Conservatory of Music, she met a young minister named Martin Luther King, Jr., and as they say, the rest is history. \u00a0While at Franconia College, I met a radical minister named William Briggs, who knew Martin Luther King, Jr., and he encouraged my efforts in the area of political activism. \u00a0When I started an underground magazine called the North Country Union Reader<\/i>, I printed it on Rev. Briggs’ mimeograph machine in his church basement.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n Coretta Scott King has special associations for those of us who take a particular interest in children’s literature. \u00a0In 1969 a group of librarians with affiliations with the American Library Association established the Coretta Scott King Award to recognize outstanding children’s books created by African Americans. \u00a0They named the award after her in part because of her long-standing interest in the welfare and education of children. \u00a0In 1970 they announced the first winner of this award, which went to Lillie Patterson for her biography Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: \u00a0Man of Peace. \u00a0<\/i>As some of you know, every summer I teach a seminar called Children’s Literature Award Winners in which I cover the most recent winners of the major awards in children’s literature, including the Coretta Scott King Award. \u00a0Through teaching this seminar, I regularly touch base with Coretta Scott King’s legacy. \u00a0I never met her, but I know people who did, and they assure me that she highly valued children’s literature. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As we honor Martin Luther King, Jr., let us also remember to honor Coretta Scott King. \u00a0Perhaps one way to do this is to read a book that has won the Coretta Scott King Award. \u00a0Here is a link to a list of past winners of this award: \u00a0http:\/\/www.ala.org\/emiert\/coretta-scott-king-book-awards-all-recipients-1970-present.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Award-Winning Lil<\/span><\/b> \u2014 Lil Brannon and our former colleague Tony Scott recently \u00a0learned that they received the 2014 Braddock Award for their article titled “Democracy, Struggle, and the Praxis of Assessment,” which appeared in the December 2013 issue of College Composition and\u00a0Communication. \u00a0<\/i><\/span>The award was started in l975 and is given to the best essay published during the preceding year in\u00a0College Composition and Communication, <\/i>which\u00a0is widely regarded as the top journal in rhetoric and composition. \u00a0Please join me in congratulating Lil (and Tony) for winning this\u00a0prestigious\u00a0award.<\/span><\/p>\n