Poet Sekou Andrews headlines UChicago Medicine’s annual King celebration

Sekou Andrews, speaker at the UChicago Medicine MLK celebration

As part of its 42nd annual celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, the University of Chicago Medicine enlisted world-renowned speaker Sekou Andrews to deliver a unique keynote address.

Andrews, who started his career as a school teacher and has won national poetry slams, is the creator of poetic voice, a new category of communication that fuses inspirational speaking with spoken-word poetry to make messages more moving and memorable.

The Jan. 23 celebration began with an uplifting musical selection from the Chicago Children’s Choir, which was founded as a single choir in Hyde Park at the height of the Civil Rights Movement in 1956. With a mission to inspire and change lives through music, it has grown into a program that serves more than 4,600 youth who represent all 57 Chicago ZIP codes. The group has performed worldwide for celebrities along with local, national and global leaders.

Kenneth S. Polonsky, MD, executive vice president for medical affairs at the University of Chicago, introduced Andrews by noting to the audience that the decision to work at the Medical Center represents a decision to serve — a key theme of the annual holiday.

“In 1957, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said to an audience in Montgomery, Alabama that 'life’s most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?’” Polonsky said. "You all have chosen to work here out of an earnest commitment to serve others. This is what you all do on a daily basis, and why you get up to come to work. Your efforts and contributions are numerous, and I salute each and every one.” 

Andrews, who has performed for former President Barack Obama in Oprah Winfrey’s backyard, focused his 45-minute energetic, upbeat message on why it's important for clinicians to tap into one's imagination to spark the creativity required to “make waves” in the health care industry and create positive change.

Through prose and poetry, he cleverly attributed the metaphor of “making waves” to the work of Dr. King and his ability to “stir the water” to create the world he knew could be.

University of Chicago Medical Center President Sharon O’Keefe reminded faculty and staff in attendance of the often-forgotten intended purpose of the holiday.

“The Martin Luther King holiday is the only federal holiday observed as a national day of service — which means it should not be seen as a day off, but rather a day on," she said. "In honoring Dr. King’s legacy, UChicago Medicine strives to make every day a 'day on' for the South Side — whether it’s increasing economic opportunity, improving wellness in our community through outreach, volunteering across the region, or providing the finest health care possible.”

Andrews stated:

“To be unafraid to dream boldly and think radically and put an 'S' on the chest of your mild-mannered strategy. Your creativity holds the power to cure your own gravity. Put a little tooth fairy in your resources cavities to reimagine the science in this version of yourself and give impossibility reason to believe in something else. This is the essence of Dr. King’s dream. The ability to imagine a better world. To create our own version of equality, community and diversity. And insist upon nothing else. This is how waves are made.”

Look below for video snippets of Andrews' motivational message.

Past speakers of UChicago Medicine’s King celebration have included award-winning journalist and former BET new anchor Ed Gordon, television host and author Jeff Johnson, political activist and author Angela Davis, documentary filmmaker and activist Judy Richardson and actor, author, and philanthropist Hill Harper.

People can enjoy two video snippets of Sekou Andrews performance below: 

https://bcove.video/2DNUAnP

https://bcove.video/2ngnYc9