Ken Johnston

Ken Johnston is a Philadelphia-based walking artist who responds to the call of social change and history by walking to put “movement” back in the civil rights movement. During the past year, Ken has retraced the footsteps of Harriet Tubman’s movements between known Underground Railroad communities from Maryland to New York. While raising awareness on the importance of protecting and preserving hard-earned civil rights, Ken works on building community through lantern-making engagement activities. He uses lanterns for shining light on issues to bring communities closer together. In 2018, he successfully completed a 400-mile solo walking journey across the Deep South for MLK50 from Selma, Alabama to Memphis, Tennessee visiting the many places Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. either worked, pastored, or led peaceful protests. Internationally, he has walked across Ireland symbolically linking its short-lived civil rights movement with the U.S. and across Puerto Rico on the second anniversary of Hurricane Maria following the trajectory of the devastating storm’s path. When Ken is not walking, he enjoys planning and creating public lantern events while researching his next adventure. His professional background is in career development and human services.