Ross honors MLK with inspirational speaker

The University of Michigan and the Ross School of Business has a lot to celebrate as the nation recognizes and honors the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "Ross is the closest thing to Martin Luther King's dream that I have ever experienced," says Alex Sutton, President of the Black Business Students Association. As part of the events scheduled for the day's celebration, Dr. Julianne Malveaux, economist, columnist, author, and businesswoman, spoke at the Mendelssohn Theatre to a full house.

Dr. Malveaux spoke about the economic content that is missing from the mainstream view of Martin Luther King, Jr. She sees King as an organizer who pursued economic justice; simply put, he worked to build a fair economy that works for everyone. Julianne Malveaux quoted numerous times Martin Luther King's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, where he addressed the public stating: "I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture of their minds, dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits" - this was King's economic plan for the nation.

Described as "the most iconoclastic public individual in the country" by Cornel West of Princeton, Dr. Malveaux supported her reputation with humor and a critical view of the current state of the nation. She sees that America's status as the greatest nation in the world is eroding, and attributes it to two factors: Iraq and New Orleans. "Our greatness isn't showing in either." Because of this loss of the world's esteem, our inability to deal with diversity, and divesting rather than investing in education, a realistic view of the nation is that we are facing a change in status.

Proposition 2 was brought up many times, both while Julianne Malveaux spoke and during a Q&A session following the speech. She described the legislation as "mean-spirited" and urged the audience to read a book by Ira Katznelson called "When Affirmative Action was White," which looks at the history of subsidizing programs in the US from 19th century European immigrants receiving land and education to become successful farmers to the post-WWII GI Bill.

When asked to give advice to the University's committee on diversity in the aftermath of Proposition 2, Dr. Malveaux answered that the first step is to spread understanding about the history of affirmative action and subsidizing programs, and the idea that education is the way to close the gap. She also stressed the importance of changes being a university-wide effort and that they have "rainbow leadership," involving all different groups, as diversity is everyone's issue.

As Dr. Malveaux stated, Proposition 2 is not simply an issue of racial diversity. Alex Sutton believes that within Ross, the group most affected will be the women. The number of women enrolled, especially in MBA programs, will most likely drop significantly (currently, women represent only 34% of the MBA students).

Now that Proposition 2 is taking effect immediately, even next year's class of admits to the business school could see dramatic changes in its male-female ratio. These effects could, after a few years, harm the great atmosphere of diversity that makes Ross such a unique place to be and a desirable place to recruit.

Mr. Sutton described coming to Ross as an "exploration" into a place "where diversity actually works." The skills learned at Ross in bridging cultural borders enrich our professional careers in the business world, Sutton added.
This statement sums up what many people will take away from Ross; yes, knowledge from coursework, internship experience, but more importantly, exposure to diversity of thought, and as a result, true social equity. Many of us take for granted that Ross provides us with a unique and rare atmosphere where cultures, races, genders, and classes meet on a level playing field.

Dr. Malveaux, challenging the lofty language too often used to describe Martin Luther King's legacy, said: "hope, like dream, does not happen without action.