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Community Corner

Student Profile: Iqbal Hopes MLK Day Will Inspire Activism, Volunteerism

With a heavy emphasis on paying forward good fortune, volunteers such as Gia Iqbal believe that people can change the world for the better by following King's philosophy.

Gia Iqbal said that what Martin Luther King Jr. did for people of color in the United States is something that is felt every day, not just on the holiday commemorating the civil rights pioneer's birthday.

“My hope is that people who attend the realize that what he did was something that can be continued and built on,” said Iqbal, a 25-year-old resident of Canton Township and a volunteer site leader for Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service.

“I became interested in volunteering because this is something that we need now,” she said.

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As a site leader, Iqbal–who is balancing a double major of communications and psychology at U-M Dearborn–helped ensure that all of the activities that took place at McKinley Elementary School, which is part of Van Dyke Public Schools in Warren,  kicked off without incident. There, volunteers updated the girls and boys bathrooms with paint colors picked out by students at the school.

The volunteerism is a key part of the King celebration that Iqbal hopes stays with all of the people who volunteered, and those who received help.

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“Giving back is part of what (King) was about,” she said. “For so many people–people of color–there was a situation where they felt they had no voice. But Martin Luther King helped to change all of that.

“Today, things are a lot different than they were in the 1960s,” Iqbal added. “He spoke out about a lot of things that no one was talking about.”

Iqbal said that as a student attending Plymouth-Canton Schools, she learned a lot about Martin Luther King, including hearing his “I Have a Dream” speech in school.

“I knew that Martin Luther King made it OK for people of color to speak out,” she said. “That was something that was very important to us, and it’s something that we need to continue to uphold.”

Volunteerism, she added, is a key part of continuing to honor King’s life, more than 40 years after his assassination: “By volunteering, we make sure that we help people that may feel like they don’t have a voice because they are poor, or because they are struggling.”

With a busy schedule and a challenging program at UM-Dearborn, Iqbal said she plans to finish her bachelor’s degree and then apply to law school to continue her activism through that venue.

Iqbal said the biggest thing volunteers can learn is that one person can be empowered enough to make a difference, especially if they see injustices.

“I think Martin Luther King Jr.’s lasting legacy is that he was able to change things,” she said. “It makes people think that they also will be able to make an impact during their lifetimes.”

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