What: The Johns Hopkins University and Johns Hopkins Medicine will celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

The keynote speaker will be Morris Dees, a founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center. The law center was established in 1971, after Dees won a series of civil rights cases that helped integrate government and public institutions. Known for his courageous stance against white supremacist organizations, he has led lawsuits that have crippled some of America’s most notorious hate groups. The University of Alabama bestows an annual award in Dees’ honor to a lawyer devoted to public service work. Dees and the law center continue to monitor hate crimes and civil rights issues across the United States. The center developed an educational program on tolerance that is used in more than 80,000 schools across the country.

Speakers at previous commemorations include Coretta Scott King, Desmond Tutu, Rosa Parks, Stevie Wonder, Maya Angelou, Dick Gregory, John Lewis, Jesse Jackson, James Earl Jones and Freeman Hrabowski III.

When: Friday, Jan. 9, 2015, at noon

Where: Turner Auditorium, East Monument Street, between North Broadway and Rutland Avenue

Parking is available in nearby garages and on East Monument Street.