City of Madison's MLK Humanitarian Awardees:
John Quinlan and Lauren Rock to be honored
Condensed from the winners’ nomination

Reflecting Dr. King’s non-violent philosophy

John Quinlan
     John Quinlan exemplified Dr. King’s non-violent philosophy. His nominator, Leila Pine, emphaisized that Quinlan is a dedicated
community leader who often serves as a peace-maker betweensparring factions and helps uniofy people in times of conflic and
controversy. His dedication to non-violent social change has been reflected in his nearly 30 years of important work on behalf of civil
rights and social justice in the Madison community as a nonprofit administrator, community activist, board leader, consultant, and
journalist. He is a compassionate healer in the public arena and a talented organizer who speaks from the heart, with respect and
compassion for all those involved.
    Quinlan’s parents instilled in him a deep resonance with the life’s work of Dr. King and movements that employ non-violent methods to
achieve social change. His mother served as a Methodist missionary in India in the early 1950s, where she learned Ghandian principles
of non-violence that she later applied in her work as an activist who promoted peace through the arts. Quinlan’s father served as a South
Korean Methodist missionary, supporting colleagues advancing non-violent strategies in solidarity with the Korean democracy movement.
    As an older student who recently returned to studies at UW-Madison, Quinlan’s studies concentrated on coursework that has connected
him with the grassroots movements that have advanced civil rights. For the past two years, he has also led efforts to advance into the
community an ongoing civil rights-based oral history project begun at the UW that builds bridges beween community leaders and young
people in Selma, Ala. and Madison.

Lauren Rock
     King’s philosophy of non-violence has been exemplified through Lauren Rock’s daily life as she constantly learns from the positive
reassurance of her mother’s ideas, accomplishments, hardships, and support. She constantly strives to understand others and provide
solutions to benefit those around her. Caring for others and aiding in their needs, even when it may delay her tasks, are two characteristics
she possesses. Rock is committed to education, which she believes will create her path to a freer and just world; athletics, which allows
one to show others the external talents that one has been blessed with; and spirit, the ability to have faith to strengthen one’s internal
being.

Impact on the lives of people in the Madison community

John Quinlan
     One of Quinlan’s primary contributions has been his work as a journalist in sharing the stories of people whose voices might otherwise
never been heard. For more than 20 years, he has been a contributing writer and broadcaster for publications and programming serving
Madison’s communities of color, and the LGBT community. For the past three years, he has served as the host and producer of a two- to
three-hour current events and interview radio show, “Forward Forum,: a show that has explored through in-depth interviews every
conceivable human rights and civil right issue. Quinlan has taken seriously the mandate of the Dept. of Civil Rights’ “Race and Media
Forums,” endeavoring to produce a show that is reflective of the full diversity of the Madison community, and its involvement in the larger
world community. This includes covering issues from African American student achievement to understanding the Hmong community in
Madison, from immigrant rights and human rights on the U.S./Mexican border to the experience of people with mental illness and their
families in the wake of the Virginia Tech tragedy, from efforts to support the democracy movement in Burma and to efforts to support
multicultural community organizing in Madison.
    As a gay man, Quinlan has weathered societal prejudice and discrimination. As someone who has experienced depression and its
accompanying stigma, he has shown perseverance and resilience.
    Quinlan has received several awards, including, “Wisconsin Fair Housing Advocate of the Year” (1988) and “Man of the Year 1993” for
Outreach. In 2002, he received the “Sally Sunde Award for Social Justice from Community Shares of Wisconsin.

Lauren Rock
     Rock has lived in the Madison community for 9 years. She has grown to truly show her Wisconsin colors, even though she is a native of
Rockford, Ill. Rock became a more outgoing student when she transfered from Madison’s public school system to the private school
system, when she started her 6th grade at Edgewood Campus School. There she learned new sports she had never heard of, and
interacted with people who were completely different from her. During her high school years, Rock became involved in clubs and
organizations for minorities and some of her favorite hobbies. Rock volunteered as Memorial High school’ BSU secretary her sophomore
year and this year advanced Memorial’s BSU by adding a more inclusive component — Into It, a student organization that support all
minority students, not just those who identify as “Black.” She has also participated in many volunteer work and summer programs and has
received numerous awards including the ULGM MLK Award, and Outstanding Youth achievement Award (Nehemiah Corporation).