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Taylor Branch

January 16, 2026
Event flyer for the King Institute features a photo of Taylor Branch and event details: he will speak on MLK Jr. at 6 p.m., Jan. 16, at Lee Street Baptist Church, Bristol, VA. Sponsors and logos are displayed.

King’s Institute for Faith & Culture Spring Speaker Series Opens with Pulitzer-winning Author Taylor Branch on January 16th

King University’s Institute for Faith & Culture (IFC) speaker series, “Equipped for Every Good Work,” continues on January 16th, 2026, with an evening with Pulitzer-winning author Taylor Branch. In partnership with the Johnson City Martin Luther King, Jr. Planning Committee, this event contributes to MLK day observances throughout the Tri-Cities.

Branch will speak at Lee Street Baptist Church, 1 West Mary Street in Bristol, Virginia at 6:00 p.m. on “Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Study in Character,” with a reception by Chef T and a book sale and signing to follow in the church hall. This event is free and open to the public.

Branch will also be in conversation with Dr. Daryl Carter at the annual MLK Prayer Breakfast on Saturday, January 17, 2026 at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church, 225 Princeton Road, in Johnson City, Tennessee. Breakfast will be served at 9:00 a.m., and the program will begin at 9:30 a.m. The event includes prayers from local ministers along with a recognition of community leaders who serve with humility and distinction. Branch’s books will be available for sale and signing. Tickets are $15 per person and can be purchased at the Langston Centre (423.434.5785). Proceeds support the Carver Recreation Center’s annual youth trip to a Civil Rights Movement historic site.

Widely hailed for his storytelling skill, Branch spent 24 years researching and producing his three-volume history of America in the Martin Luther King, Jr. years. The first volume, Parting the Waters, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1989, followed by Pillar of Fire and At Canaan’s Edge. He has published a shorter summary volume, The King Years: Historic Moments in the Civil Rights Movement, as well as The Clinton Tapes: Conversations with a President, 1993 – 2001. His 2011 article for The Atlantic, “The Shame of College Sports,” was important in early conversations about the payment of college athletes.

“We are honored to welcome Taylor Branch to the Tri-Cities as we remember Dr Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy,” said Dr. Martin Dotterweich, Director of the King Institute for Faith & Culture. “King University is focused on character education, and Branch’s consideration of Dr. King’s character will provide us with much to ponder and to emulate. It is a joy to bring this event to the Tri-Cities with the Johnson City MLK Planning Committee and our sponsors.”

These events are made possible by a partnership between many organizations, including Eastman, the Educating for Character Initiative, the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee, King University, Langston Education and Arts Development (LEAD) Johnson City, Lee Street Baptist Church, and Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church.

The IFC spring speaker series continues on February 2nd with Dr. Keith Johnson examining the relationship of theologian Karl Barth to the German state as WWII approached. Other spring speakers include Jon Sweeney on the 800th anniversary of St Francis of Assisi, historian Aaron Griffith, theologian John Arthur Nunes, James Byrd on the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, King’s own Abigail Cutter, writer Christina Bieber Lake, and a final event with Amy Peeler and Jessica Hooten Wilson.

Since 2007, the King University Institute for Faith & Culture has welcomed widely recognized thinkers, authors, musicians, scholars, and philosophers to interact with students and a regional audience in a welcoming environment that catalyzes growth and understanding. The Institute serves as the standard bearer of the University’s Christ-animated exploration of the liberal arts, in conjunction with King’s mission of equipping students to answer the call of service and character inherent in the Christian faith.

Events

“Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Study in Character”

  • Time: January 16 at 6:00 p.m.
  • Location:
    • Lee Street Baptist Church
    • 1 West Mary Street, Bristol, Virginia
  • Cost: Open to public

MLK Prayer Breakfast

  • Time: January 17 at 9:00 a.m.
  • Location:
    • Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church
    • 225 Princeton Road, Johnson City, Tennessee
  • Cost: Tickets are $15 per person and can be purchased at the Langston Centre (423.434.5785).
    • Proceeds support the Carver Recreation Center’s annual youth trip to a Civil Rights Movement historic site.