Since 2016, I have had the pleasure of getting to know Dr. Virgil Wood, a church leader, educator, and civil rights activist who has committed much of his life’s work to the struggle for economic and spiritual development among the nation’s disadvantaged.
Our work together led to the creation of the Beloved Community Initiative (BCI), which established an essay contest and hosted the MLK Jubilee Summit in 2018. In that same year, Dr. Wood was invited to give the Virginia Tech Graduate School Commencement speech.
The BCI currently produces videos that document the narratives, histories, efforts, and visions of those working to advance Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s conception of the Beloved Community in the 21st Century. A number of of these videos can be viewed in the BCI “In Conversation” series.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (left) and Dr. Virgil Wood (right). Photo courtesy of Getty Images. 
The Rev. Gilbert H. Caldwell (right) stands with the Revs. Martin Luther King Jr. (left) and Virgil Wood on the roof of a Boston public school in 1965. Photo courtesy of the Rev. Gilbert H. Caldwell. 
Photo courtesy of Getty Images. 
Dr. Virgil Wood (left) and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (right). Photo courtesy of Getty Images. 
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., accompanied by Ralph Abernathy, right, and Rev. Virgil Wood, head of the Boston branch of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, as they lead a civil rights march down Charles Street and on to Boston Common on April 23, 1965. Dr. King came to Boston to lead the demonstration to protest schools, jobs, and housing. (AP Photo) 
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
The videos below were recorded in 2019 and capture conversations between Professor Sylvester Johnson, Dr. Virgil Wood, and Dr. Owen Cardwell. The first video provides a teaser of what is captured in more detail in the subsequent videos. The videos were produced by Prof. Rachel Lin Weaver.
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