The University of Alabama at Birmingham Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion awarded three finalists, and two winners at the inaugural Word from the Mountaintop Oratory Contest held on Saturday, Jan 20 at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.

This initiative was created to recognize and give students the opportunity to reflect on the words of Dr. King while connecting his message to issues facing our nation in the 21st century. Also, the contest provided students the opportunity to display and enhance their writing and communication skills through oration.

Ramsey High School runner-up, Lyndia Stinson entitled her speech “Stand Up.” She advocated for community activism as a way to advance social equity.

College runner-ups Steven Wilson and Orielle Caudle spoke about the dangers of individualism that could lead to a weakening of community. In his speech, “No More” Mr. Wilson reminds us that regardless of our political affiliations and self-interests, we are all on the same team seeking progress. Ms. Caudle used her title “It’s Time to Soar” to serve as a clarion call to remove the selfish mindset of individualistic success which often “brainwashes the successors—eventually making them forget that if they are on the top, someone has to be on the bottom."

The winner of the high school division, Kayla Caldwell delivered a speech entitled “Jesus is Always the Answer, but Education Works as Well”. In her speech, Ms. Caldwell addressed the importance of educating ourselves, learning through civil dialogue, and taking action.

The college division winner of the Word from the Mountaintop Oratory Contest, Ms. Kameryn Thigpen spoke of “A Vision for the Forthcoming” in which she referenced the words of Dr. King and others that reminds us of the need to take swift action. As such, we should remember the interconnectedness of our humanity, build upon the habit of taking care of one another, speak out against injustices (especially for the voiceless), and answer the question posed by Dr. King, “What are you doing for others?”

"We would like to thank all the students who participated in our inaugural oratory contest," said Paulette Patterson Dilworth, Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at UAB. We're so pleased to see this contest was well-received. We take our responsibility for nurturing our young people's talents and potential from an early age seriously, so they can truly realize their dreams in the future," added Dilworth." Here at UAB, we deeply believe education is the key to success."