Danish Siddiqui was honored as Loyola’s recipient of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Service Award as part of the 23rd annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Week for Peace Celebration.
The is given to one student from each of four universities in the New Orleans area: Tulane, Dillard, Xavier, and Loyola universities.
Aside from the typical criteria required for many awards such as good academic standing, the recipients must also display the principles and ideology of Martin Luther King, Jr. and show dedication to their community.
“People forget how much they have and how much they take for granted,” said Danish Siddiqui, this years’ recipient of the award from Loyola.
Siddiqui, a pre-med biology senior heading towards graduation this May, has spent a large part of her life helping those less fortunate in both New Orleans and her native-country, Pakistan.
George Gallien, associate chaplain for university ministry, said that Siddiqui really stands out because of “her plight back in her country. She was overwhelmed with a lot of the fighting and things in her country and she still stood out and emerged from that with so much energy … and continued to reach out in a loving way.”
The president of the Muslim Student Association, Siddiqui passed out basic necessities to the homeless under the Claiborne overpass with MSA.
She has also volunteered at Claiborne Medical Center and at battered women’s shelters in Pakistan.
Seeing the poverty in New Orleans and in her own country, Siddiqui said she feels that it is her duty to better the lives of others.
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?'” said Siddiqui, quoting the man for whom her award is named. This is what she tries to live by everyday through her service, she said.
Siddiqui remembers how touched she was by Dick Gregory, the speaker at the ceremony and a close friend of King during his life. Gregory spoke about how King’s fight was not a fight simply for blacks, she said.
“It was a movement for people,” said Siddiqui. “All people.”
This social justice movement still continues today, she said.
“It does not just end with Obama becoming president. It does not end with women being able to vote,” she said.
Covering all bases for her future after Loyola, Siddiqui, who ultimately wants to become a doctor, is applying not only to medical school, but also to graduate school and the Masters of Public Health program close to home.
Emily Ramirez can be reached at [email protected].
