“We adopt the means of nonviolence because our end is a community at peace with itself. We will try to persuade with our words, but if our words fail, we will try to persuade with our acts.”
- Martin Luther King Jr.

We invite you to spend Martin Luther King Jr. Day at moCa, learning, making, and sharing experiences based on direct action. The following offerings are free and open to all.

11am – 12:30pm:
Deconstructing Dr. King, America’s Prophet of Nonviolence

Fifty years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., his nonviolent approach to change remains as relevant as ever. This lecture and discussion will explore Dr. King’s understanding of nonviolence, his critique of economic inequality and racial injustice, and his use of nonviolent direct action to foment change.

12:30 – 1:30pm:
Affirmative Political Sign-Making with Favianna Rodriguez
How can you use words and art to express the positive change that you want to see in your community and our world? Come work with and learn from celebrated artist and activist Favianna Rodriguez, co-editor of Reproduce and Revolt, who will lead this interactive art-making activity.

1:30 – 3:30pm:
Protest, Petition, and Civil Disobedience
A For Freedoms Town Hall (Freedom of Expression)

Panelists: Favianna Rodriguez (artist and activist); Emma Solkowicz (artist, Carry that Weight); Shakyra Diaz (Alliance for Safety and Justice); M. Carmen Lane (artist and Executive Director, ATNSC: Center for Healing & Creative Leadership); Moderated by Dan Moulthrop (City Club)

This special For Freedoms Town Hall explores the various methods and related outcomes of peaceful protest today. From raising a fist or taking a knee during the National Anthem to organizing marches to creating obstructive performances that draw attention to serious issues, our panelists will share their goals and challenges around non-violent direct action. The discussion will explore both sanctioned approaches like petitioning as well as non-endorsed, even penalized activities as individual and collective ways to effect change. We invite participants from the community to come listen, ask questions, share their experiences of this critical aspect of our democracy.