𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐉𝐫

𝑏𝑦 𝐴𝑏𝑖𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑙 𝑇𝑎𝑦𝑙𝑜𝑟, YES Abroad student

On January 15, 1929, Martin Luther King Jr was born. He spent his life preaching a message of love and respect. He participated in peaceful protests, sit-ins, and boycotts to call attention to America’s racial hypocrisy. He insistently preached a message of 'hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that'.

To remember who he was and teach others his message, I held two events. The first was a park clean up, where young people gathered and collected trash in Gradski park. For every full bag of trash, 100 denars will be spent on purchasing food for homeless people. YES Abroad, YES Alumni and local friends joined in the act of service, which was organized in cooperation with YES Alumna Isidora Stefanoska.

The second event was a movie night, where we viewed and discussed 'King: A Filmed Record’, a documentary made up of compiled footage from Martin Luther King’s speeches and marches. Both events were enriching, as they encouraged all of us to live our lives like he did - to work peacefully against injustice and to promote love and equality.