Meridian Community College: Alumnus, Judge Reflects On Past, Offers Hope For Future At Black History Month Celebration

Press release from Meridian Community College:

February 4, 2022

From musical to dance presentations and tributes to testimonies, Meridian Community
College’s Black History Month’s Celebration’s Know the Past, Shape the Future offered
takeaways for the college and community audience.

Keynote speaker the Hon. Kenneth Dustin Markham, municipal court judge for the City
of Meridian and an alumnus of the College, explored and recrafted the celebration’s
theme to knowing our past and shaping our future.

Markham, an MCC 2014 Hall of Fame honoree, noted he was proud to be an MCC student
and that everyone – those who have or will have or now attending MCC – has an MCC
story. “Even from the bench in the courtroom as I enroll those wanting a second chance
at life in the MCC Adult Education Program instead of making them serve jail time
because I know they can do better… I’m proud to tell my MCC story.”

“Meridian Community College has made a judge, an attorney, and most importantly, a
graduate,” he said in referring to himself. “In 2003, Meridian Community College shaped
the future in 2022 by shaping me.” 

The speaker delved into the past and paths of Ruby Bridges, the first African-American
child to desegregate a New Orleans school, baseball home run legend Hank Aaron, Dr.
Theodore Roosevelt Mason Howard, civil rights activist, and Stacey Abrams, who founded
the Fair Fight initiative. “Remembering the past gives power to the present,” Markham
said, adding, “the way you remember the past depends on your hope for the future.”

“There’s still work to be done, achievements to be made. We must take on this world
by being fearless like Ruby Bridges, persevere like Hank Aaron, be brave and versatile
like Dr. Howard, and be courageous like Stacy Abrams. But we can’t stop there,” he
said.

“Once you become fearless, life becomes limitless,” Markham added.

Markham, who was a student recruiter when he studied at MCC, was gifted a new Ivy
League Recruiter sweatshirt hoodie after his presentation in the MCC-Riley Workforce
Development Center.

This press release was produced by Meridian Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.