Amidst the gnawing racial tensions of the early 1960s, civil rights leader Diane Nash found herself distributing fliers and talking with residents of a small town in Mississippi -- her goal was for blacks to gain the right to vote.

After a week of unconvincing conversations with the residents, it was time for their first meeting and she was pleasantly surprised by the turnout.

"All the seats were taken," she said. "And all the windows were open so that clusters of people could stand outside and listen," she added.

"The only way to make change is to take action," she said to the audience of nearly 1,000 people in Eisenhower Auditorium last night.

Her speech, part of the closing ceremonies of the 2003 Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, provided students with insight into her past and inspiration for the future.

Nash worked with Martin Luther King Jr. during her work as a civil rights activist and admired his steadfastness.

"He could walk through a storm and come out on the other side," she said.

As a college student, Nash was also involved with efforts to give blacks equal rights to public transportation and coordinated the "Freedom Ride" of bus passengers in Birmingham, Ala.

"I always disagree with the use of the word 'non-violence,' " she said. Instead, she likes to refer her method of taking action as "agapic energy".

This kind of energy is much more effective than using violence. Agapic energy is "the love of mankind," she added.

Nash cited her involvement with the 1960s sit-in movement to desegregate lunch counters in Nashville, Tenn., as an example. She said the lunch counter owners were afraid if they complied with her request to let people of all races eat together, white people would boycott.

To successfully solve this problem, Nash recruited white women who agreed to sit next to black men at the counter while they ate.

She said one of the most important phases in taking action is the negotiation phase, in which you contact your opposition and inform them of your position.

"Let them know that you respect them, but that you won't tolerate what they do," she added.

The problem with using violence to solve problems is that you physically kill the other individual but leave the real problem "unattacked," she said.

"If violence was effective at bringing about social change, we would be living in a utopia," she added.

Nash also provided inspiration and a reminder to those wishing to make a difference.

"Freedom is a constant, never-ending struggle," she said. "Every generation faces its own challenges."

Edwin Arnez (senior-information sciences and technology) said he was impressed by Nash's presentation.

"I was definitely inspired," he said. "But I also think [the presentation] was a good reminder that change still needs to be made."