Civil rights icon, Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr. will be the special guest at the 2025 MLK Day of Celebration event

The Commission is honored to welcome Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr., a key figure in the American Civil Rights Movement, as the keynote speaker. A lifelong advocate for nonviolence, Dr. LaFayette’s contributions to civil rights are profound.

As a co-founder of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in 1960, he led efforts to desegregate lunch counters in Nashville through the historic sit-ins. In 1961, he participated in the Freedom Rides, challenging segregation in interstate bus travel, despite enduring violence and arrest. Dr. LaFayette’s leadership was also central to the Selma Voting Rights Movement, where he played a crucial role in voter registration and nonviolent demonstrations, helping to pave the way for the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

 “Dr. LaFayette embodies the principles of courage, resilience, and nonviolence that defined the Civil Rights Movement,” said Elaine Hardy, chair of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan. “His voice and vision are exactly what we need as we commemorate 40 incredible years of this event and recommit ourselves to the ongoing work of building a just and equitable society.”

LaFayette also served as the national coordinator of the 1968 Poor People's Campaign, an initiative organized by Martin Luther King Jr. to address economic justice. Throughout his career, LaFayette has been a minister, educator, and lecturer, recognized globally as an authority on nonviolent social change strategies. 

The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan is the nation’s longest-running, continuously operating MLK commission, and its annual Day of Celebration is the nation’s largest MLK Day luncheon event.

The 2025 theme for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Celebration is: “I Have a Dream that One Day this Nation will Rise Up and Live Out the True Meaning of its Creed – We Hold These Truths to be Self-evident: That All Men are Created Equal.” – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Tickets for the Day of Celebration can be purchased online at mlkmidmichigan.com/day-of-celebration.