News
More than 1,000 people crowded into Spaulding Auditorium and overflow areas last night to hear Harvard University Professor Cornel West, the keynote speaker for the College's celebration of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.
West discussed racism in America, self-segregation, leadership and humanity.
A scholar, philosopher and activist, West currently teaches Afro-American studies and philosophy of religion at Harvard.
Throughout his speech, West emphasized the need for a realization that the evils of inequity are still a problem in America today.
"What's most frightening for me at this present moment is when people say that things are okay," West said.
But West said things are "not okay" because this is a "ghastly and horrendous century that we live in."
The realization of this problem begins with individuals' consciences, he said.
People should struggle with their consciences, because there are always societal ills that should not be forgotten.
"If we reach a point where we are completely satisfied with ourselves, then something is wrong," he said.
One problem he noted is "racial purity," the belief among many people in America that they can be utterly free of racist conceptions.