On April 4th, 1968, revolutionary civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated by escaped convict James Earl Ray at his Memphis hotel. This Friday April 4 is the 40th anniversary of this event and as a memorial to Dr. King, the Rosa Parks Student Association Organizing Committee (RPSAOC) is calling for a moment of silent reflection at noon.

This project started five years ago with the efforts of Africana Studies Professor Tony Van Der Meer and students from the UMass Boston and has continued to grow with each following year.

This year, the RPSAOC has also started the Green Ribbon Campaign and combined it with the Moment of Silent Reflection for Dr. King. They have asked that everyone wear Green Ribbons as a show of support for justice and reconstruction for the victims and survivors of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

“We started by creating awareness at the University of Massachusetts Boston and are reaching out to other colleges and Universities to join us in our fight to bring about awareness,” said on of the campaigns organizers Sade Johnson. “It is very important to the Rosa Parks Student Association Organizing Committee that everyone participates in taking the Moment of Silent Reflection for Dr. King so that he, and his teachings, are not forgotten. It is also important to have people wear the Green Ribbons so the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and their needs are not forgotten. Overall we would just like to create awareness on these important issues that are swept under the rug and as time passes forgotten about. Participating in the Moment of Silent Reflection and wearing a Green Ribbon says: ‘We have not forgotten’.”