Sybrina Fulton lost her seventeen-year old son, Trayvon Martin and was instantly thrust into the spotlight as a grieving mother whose son's tragic murder would challenge the soul of a nation. Her journey included a clarion call to mothers everywhere to speak truth to power and rally against injustice. She channeled her pain and loss into a national movement and has challenged people across the country and around the world to speak up. She recounts the beauty of her son's life to be sure his story is told with accuracy and truth.
Mount Holyoke's 2021-2022 Common Read is the powerful text, The Fire This Time. Edited by Jesmyn Ward and featuring Kiese Laymon, Mitchell Jackson, Claudia Rankine and many others. The book was dedicated to Trayvon Martin.
As Mount Holyoke continues to engage in becoming an anti-racist community, we seek to be in dialogue with leaders and scholars who continue to fight racism through public service, research, dialogue and art. For this year's Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration, we welcome Sybrina Fulton to our beloved community.