Dear UT Community,

Today, as we remember and celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., it is an opportunity for us to think as a community about where Dr. King said we should go, how we get there, and our actions along the way.

When Dr. King gave what would be his final speech on a rainy April night in Memphis 56 years ago, he concluded an hour of extemporaneous remarks by telling his audience that he had been to the mountaintop and seen what was on the other side.

“I’ve seen the Promised Land,” Dr. King said. “I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land.”

That was Dr. King’s final call to action. Today and every day, it is incumbent upon us to answer that call. And the real progress — the real fulfillment of his dream — will come in our actions toward one another, day after day, as we march toward a place where all people are treated equally, where racism is fully eradicated, and where there is opportunity, freedom, and true justice for all.
That is the Promised Land that Dr. King envisioned — and we must get there.

But just as important is how we treat one another during the journey. Here at UT, we are striving to become the highest-impact public research university in the world. And what greater way to demonstrate our impact than to help fulfill Dr. King’s vision? As a student at Morehouse College, Dr. King wrote that education is not just about intelligence, but “intelligence plus character.” That description is instructive as we go about our work at this University.

We are known to attract students with extremely high intelligence. Part of developing that intelligence is also developing their character — to ensure our students understand their own role in creating the world that Dr. King dreamt about. It begins with our work on this campus to foster a sense of belonging for all Longhorns.

Our campus should be a community that upholds the highest ideals of Dr. King’s Promised Land — opportunity, hope, justice and equality — for every person who learns here, works here, or is just passing through. The true power of education — of intelligence plus character — is found in how we use what we learn for the betterment of others. What we learn here should extend into the world.

After all, when Dr. King visited UT in 1962 to push for full integration, he said, “I do believe there is a difference between saying something and doing something.” That is how we measure our true impact: not by what we say, but by what we do.

So today, we celebrate the legacy of Dr. King. We give thanks for all who have answered his call, and we recommit ourselves to reaching that Promised Land as individuals and as the University of Texas community.