Former Obama Administration senior advisor Valerie Jarrett used the life and legacy of the late civil rights leader Doctor Martin Luther King Junior to help put the current divided political climate into context.

Jarrett told an audience at Saginaw Valley State University Wednesday that governing is messy and requires hard work, especially from young people to help strengthen democracy.

She gave the keynote address during the 12th annual Great Lakes Bay Regional King Celebration which also recognized community leaders advancing King’s vision plus numerous scholarship recipients.