HUNTSVILLE, Ala. --In honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday on Jan. 17, employees at the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command attended a program celebrating the contributions of Dr. King concerning the issue of race relations. Despite inclement weather, nearly 75 employees attended the function in the Von Braun Complex Building 1 on Thursday, Jan. 13.
Sponsored by the Equal Employment Opportunity Office (EEO), the event began with a showing of Dr. King's famous 1963 "I have a dream" speech in Washington, D.C. Following the video, Mary Peoples of the EEO proposed three questions to the audience:
1. Did Dr. King's death have an impact on you as a person or citizen'
2. Would changes in race relations from the 1960s to today have happened anyway if Dr. King had never lived'
3. Did the life of Dr. King have any impact on the civil life of America' If so, how'
The three questions led to much discussion amongst the crowd, including comments about the current diversity in the workforce and how the media played a role in these changes. The biggest discussion generator came about from Juanita Sales Lee of the Legal Office, who brought up the differences between Dr. King's tactics and Malcom X's philosophy.
After the discussion, Peoples asked the audience trivia questions regarding the life of Dr. King. Those who answered the most questions were given a calendar that related to great moments in African American history. The calendars were purchased and distributed by Maj. Steve Johnson of G3.
The next event on the calendar for the EEO Office is the celebration of Black History Month in February. The EEO Office is also working on an online diversity training program, which is being planned by Sgt. 1st Class James Epps.
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