Because he left behind more than just a dream, about 1,200 students gathered yesterday to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Austin Human Rights Commission and their partners presented a mixed-media presentation at Austin High School yesterday afternoon and later in the evening at Riverland Community College for the public.

“We wanted to provide students with the opportunity to look back, in the hopes of not having to go back,” said Kirsten Lindbloom, chair of the Austin Human Rights Commission.

“It is about learning from our history and about where we are now, so we can continue to make progress.”

The program was designed to reflect much more than the famed “I have a dream” speech, by celebrating diversity, discussing human rights and learning about the greater legacy of Dr. King, Lindbloom said.

The AHS Concert Choir opened the presentation with Robert Ray’s gospel anthem “He never failed me yet.”

Afterward, students and community members read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in eight different languages.

The AHS cast of the fall production “Into the Woods” sang a number from the play titled, “Children will listen,” and Riverland faculty member Susan Hansen and student Shane May presented a scene from “Driving Miss. Daisy,” a play based in Atlanta during the Civil Rights Movement.

Next, six of Dr. King’s famous quotes were read before Human Rights Commission member Aaron Stewart recited the “I have a dream” speech to an attentive, silenced audience of high school students.

The program came to a close with Lindbloom singing, “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” while an image of Dr. King’s likeness projected in front of the American Flag on-stage.

“Commit yourself to the noble struggle for human rights. You will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country and a finer world to live in,” flashed on stage during the finale.

The entire presentation was modeled by this Dr. King quote. Before students filed out of the auditorium, AHS Student Council members played news footage from Haiti, and solicited funds for the relief effort.

The money will go to Feed My Starving Children (FMSC), a non-profit organization based in Haiti.

Principal Brad Bergstrom said the funds will go directly toward providing meals to Haitians, and that AHS students may take a field trip to FMSC to package meals in the future.

“This is exactly what human rights are all about,” Lindbloom said. “And, this is just a great way to honor Dr. King, by giving to protect the human rights of others, in this case in Haiti.”