EMU Today

YPSILANTI – Keith Boykin, a nationally known political commentator and author, will serve as the keynote speaker for Eastern Michigan University’s 33rd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, scheduled for January 17 - 22, 2019.

Boykin will give the MLK celebration keynote address at 2 p.m. on Monday, January 21, 2019 in the Student Center Auditorium at 900 Oakwood St. Ypsilanti, Mich. The event is free and open to the public.

A graduate of Dartmouth College and Harvard Law School, Boykin has enjoyed a broad and wide-ranging career that has taken him to the Clinton White House and on to become a political commentator on major networks, such as MSNBC, CNBC, and CNN. Boykin also teaches at the Institute for Research in African-American Studies at Columbia University in New York.

As a White House Aide to President Clinton and a spokesman for the administration, Boykin was once the highest ranking openly gay person in the Clinton White House. He later went on to teach political science at American University in Washington, DC, starred in a “Showtime” political television series, and became the founder and first president of the National Black Justice Coalition.

Boykin is a New York Times best-selling author and a Lambda Literary Award winning author of four books. His newest book is "For Colored Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Still Not Enough: Coming of Age, Coming Out, and Coming Home." It responds to the crisis of youth development and suicide in the African-American community, specifically among young gay men of color.

When Boykin led the movement for diversity at Harvard Law School, he never imagined that his classmate, Barack Obama, would one day become President of the United States.

Boykin has spoken to a variety of audiences around the world, including 200,000 people at the Millennium March on Washington and the 2006 Gay Games.

The year 2019 marks the 51st anniversary of Dr. King’s assassination, which occurred on April 4, 1968. Subsequently, on November 3, 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill establishing the third Monday of every January as the Martin Luther King Jr. National Holiday, to begin in 1986.  On January 20, 1986, the United States celebrated the first national observance of the King Holiday, which also marked the first annual MLK celebration by Eastern Michigan University.

Boykin will speak briefly at the annual MLK President’s Luncheon at Eastern, an event widely attended by community leaders and EMU students, faculty and staff to honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Following the luncheon, he will deliver the MLK keynote address, and end his day meeting with a small group of EMU students.

EMU’s MLK celebration – one of the most extensive in Michigan – will take place from January 17-22, 2019 with a variety of events occurring over the week. Nominations for the annual MLK student and community humanitarian awards will be sought later this fall. For further details on the celebration, see the website link.

“EMU is proud to be planning for our 33rd MLK Celebration program, which is annually one of the most extensive celebrations in the state,” said Ellen Gold, co-chair of the planning committee and Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students at Eastern. “We are planning on a wide and stimulating range of activities that acknowledge and celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and we invite our campus and community members to join together in this important celebration.” 

About Eastern Michigan University

Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest public university in Michigan. It currently serves more than 19,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Health and Human Services; Technology, and its graduate school. EMU is regularly recognized by national publications for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website.