The year, 2025, will be a very special year as the Austin Area Heritage Council (AAHC), in collaboration with ACC African American Cultural Center (AACC), ACC Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT), ACC Black Representation of Achievement through Student Support (BRASS), Google Fiber and, Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity are sponsoring the 20th Annual MLK Oratory Competition.
The competition is opened to individual 4th, 5th and 6th grade students on school campuses. Unfortunately, previous winners of this competition are not allowed to participate in this year’s event.
This event will take place on Thursday, January 16, 2025 at 6:30pm at the Austin Community College’s (ACC) Highland Campus which is located at 6101 Highland Campus Drive, Building 4000, Room 4.2205 – Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation, Austin, Texas 78752.
Presently, we are still facing the prevalence of civil right abuses, such as systematic racism, hate speech, hate crimes, police brutality, gun violence, poverty, the loss of voting rights and the collapse of reproductive rights. Where is the love, the respect?
Where is the nonviolence, forgiveness, dignity, equity, justice, positive peace, humility, understanding, collaboration, kindness, unity, integrity, hope and trust? The time is now; to fulfill Dr. King’s dream by continuing to carry forward his unfinished work. If we don’t, change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We look to our youth to see what the realities of the world are because they are the next generation who will embrace and carry forward his dream by making it a reality.
The topic for the 2025 MLK Oratory contest is: “The Time is Now: Protecting Our Freedom and Justice by Unifying Our Voices Through Democracy.” Based on the content of the topic for this event, students are encouraged to relate to present day situations/issues which are most prominent in people’s lives today and relate to the following question, “If Dr. King were alive today, what would you share with him on how you would personally make these changes in order to have his dream become a reality for this country and the world?”
The students are encouraged to consider Dr. Martin Luther King’s ideals and principles when creating their speeches and should follow the following criteria:
- The speeches must be written by the student and cannot be more than 5 minutes in length;
- The speeches should not include props or audience participation;
- And, if a student decides to sing as part of his or her speech, the total amount of song should be no more than 30 seconds in length.
- At the school-wide and final competition, judges will be aware of specifications and will keep them in mind as they judge the students on:
- Delivery
- Stage Decorum
- Content Interpretation
- Expression and Memory, not on whether one student has more musical talent than another
We will have distinguished judges judging the final competition. Prizes will be awarded to the winners: 1st place – $500.00, 2nd place – $250.00 and 3rd place – $150.00 along with a trophy. Finalists who do not place (1st, 2nd or 3rd) will receive a token of our appreciation for competing.
Come and join us as we celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his dream of equality for all!