MLK & Kazi Nazrul Islam: The Spirit of Inclusion

As part of the celebration of the Martin Luther King Jr., holiday, members of the medical campus community gathered in the Hiebert Lounge on Wednesday, Jan. 20, in the afternoon to hear UMass Boston Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Winston E. Langley, discuss the similarities of Kazi Nazrul Islam, the national poet of Bangladesh and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Langley is the author of “Kazi Nazrul Islam: The Voice of Poetry and the Struggle for Human Wholeness,” and is considered the first Western scholar to study Nazrul.

“Considering that Islamic affairs are such a burning topic in today’s political discourse and that Nazrul Islam was a Muslim who spoke powerfully against fascism, oppression, discrimination and religious fanaticism, we asked Professor Langley to enlighten us about the poet’s contributions, in the context of Martin Luther King’s legacy. This is an intellectual challenge that only a scholar of Professor Langley’s stature could handle,” explained Rafael Ortega, MD, professor of anesthesiology and vice-chairman for academic affairs in the department of anesthesiology at BUSM as well as associate dean Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs.

In an impassioned voice, Langley compared the two men, who despite their obvious differences (race, religion, etc.) shared similarities as moral leaders and activists of their generation. Both understood that belonging to or identifying with one particular group invariably meant the exclusion of others and was the basis for among other things intolerance, injustice, bigotry, humiliation and could possibly lead to torture and murder. He cited as examples, the refugees crisis in Europe, the rise of Boko Haran and ISIS, the Charleston church shooting as well as the recent terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif.

The event was sponsored by BUSM’s Office of Diversity and Multicultural Affairs in collaboration with the BMC Events Committee, Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine Office of Diversity, BU School of Public Health and the BMC Minority Recruitment Program.