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January 16, 2016

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Enduring legacy: King’s ideals celebrated worldwide On Aug. 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech before 200,000 people on the mall in Washington D.C.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose life and legacy we celebrate on Jan. 18, is the most widely known leader of his era. He is definitely the most widely known African-American leader of the 1960s U.S. civil rights movement. His life, work and the ideals he espoused have been celebrated annually on the third Monday in January since 1986 when the first federal holiday honoring him went into effect. Locally, nationally and internationally, schools and public buildings also are named after him. In 2010, a King Memorial was erected on Independence Mall in Washington, and there are statues in his honor all over the world. King’s legacy is enduring because he believed in equality and fairness and because he inspires us all to live a life of service.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. A Timeline of His Life

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested in September 1958 in Montgomery, Ala., for “loitering.” In April 1963, he wrote “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” where he spent 11 days.

on Dec. 1 for refusing to give up her seat to a white man.

1956 1929 After 382 days of walking to work, haMartin Luther King Jr. is born on Auburn rassment, violence and intimidation for the Avenue on Jan. 15. Montgomery African-American community, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Nov. 13 1944 that bus segregation was illegal – a victory King skipped both the ninth and 11th for the boycott. grades at Booker T. Washington High School in Atlanta to enter Morehouse College as an 1957 early-admission student at age 15. In January, King, Ralph David Abernathy and 60 other ministers co-founded the 1948 Southern Christian Leadership Conference He became a minister in his father’s to fight segregation and achieve civil rights church, Ebenezer Baptist Church, on Feb. for black Americans. 25. In June at age 19, he received a B.A. in 1958 Sociology from Morehouse College. In February, the SCLC sponsored more than 20 mass meetings in key Southern cities 1953 to register black voters. King met with reliKing married Coretta Scott, a budding gious and civil rights leaders and lectured all singer and musician he met while he was a over the country on race-related issues. graduate student at Boston University. n “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” King’s first book, was published 1954 on Sept. 17. He became minister of Dexter Avenue It tells the story of the 1955-56 MontBaptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., on gomery Bus Boycott. King describes it as Oct. 13. “the chronicle of 50,000 Negroes who took to heart the principles of nonviolence, who 1955 learned to fight for their rights with the On June 5, at the age of 26, King received weapon of love, and who in the process, achis Ph.D. from Boston University. quired a new estimate of their own human He became the leader of the Montgomery worth.” Bus Boycott after Rosa Parks was arrested n King was almost killed when Izola Ware

The law authorized the federal government to enforce desegregation of public accommodations and outlaw discrimination in publicly owned facilities. n Oct. 14, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through nonviolence.

1965

n March 7, which came to be known as

Bloody Sunday, took place when police beat and threw tear gas at peaceful protesters trying to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge from Selma on their way to Montgomery to press for voting rights. The violence against the marchers was televised nationally. n March 9, King attempted to lead 2,500 protesters on the 50-mile march from Selma to Montgomery, but instead knelt, prayed and turned back. The march finally took place on March Curry stabbed him with a letter opener in 12. About 3,200 marchers walked 12 miles Harlem, N.Y., while he was on a book tour. a day and slept in fields. By the time they reached the Capitol on March 25, they were 1959 King visited India, home of Mahatma 25,000-strong. Gandhi, architect of India’s nonviolent resis1966 tance and civil disobedience movement, in On July 10, King began a campaign to end February. The five-week trip that began Feb. 3 affected him in a deeply profound way and discrimination in housing, employment and increased his commitment to America’s civil schools in Chicago. rights struggle. 1967 King marched in support of sanitation 1960 King becomes co-pastor of the Ebenezer workers who were on strike in Memphis, Baptist Church with his father, Martin Luther Tenn. King Sr. 1968 April 4, King was assassinated on the 1963 n In the spring, King organized a demon- balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. stration in downtown Birmingham, Ala., He was in Memphis to support the striking attended by families. The police turned dogs sanitation workers. King was 39 years old. and fire hoses on the demonstrators. 1984 King and Abernathy were arrested on Morehouse College unveils a King statue Good Friday, April 12, by Birmingham Police Commissioner Eugene “Bull” Connor for on the college’s King Chapel plaza. demonstrating without a permit. He spent 1983 11 days in jail during which time he wrote President Ronald Reagan signed the “Letter From a Birmingham Jail.” n At the March on Washington on Aug. national Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday 28, more than 200,000 people heard King’s into law. It is observed on the third Monday in famous “I Have a Dream” speech. January beginning in 1986. 1964 2000 n The Civil Rights Act of 1964 that outlawed The first year that the King holiday was discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin was enacted on July 2. observed in all 50 states.

CrossRoadsNews

King Holiday

January 16, 2016

“We’ll go through the sculptors list and narrow it down to four or five candidates for interviews.”

New sculptor for King statute expected by April 2346 Candler Road Decatur, GA 30032 404-284-1888 Fax: 404-284-5007

www.CrossRoadsNews.com editor@CrossRoadsNews.com

The Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Special Section is a publication of CrossRoadsNews, Atlanta’s award-winning weekly newspaper. Editor / Publisher Jennifer Parker Graphics Editor Curtis Parker Reporter Jennifer Ffrench Parker Copy Editor Brenda Yarbrough CrossRoadsNews is published every Saturday by CrossRoadsNews, Inc. We welcome articles on neighborhood issues and news of local happenings. The opinions expressed by writers and contributors are not necessarily those of the publisher, nor those of any advertisers. The concept, design and content of CrossRoadsNews are copyrighted and may not be copied or reproduced in whole or in part in any manner without . the written permission of the publisher © 2016 CrossRoadsNews, Inc.

By Ken Watts

The statue of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. slated for the Georgia State Capitol is now more than a year away as the state searches for a new sculptor. State Rep. Calvin Smyre (D-Columbus), who is working with the Georgia Capitol Arts Standards Commission, the Martin Luther King Jr. Advisory Commission, and the King Estate, said Calvin Smyre they are vetting a list of 22 sculptors from across Georgia and the country and they hope to select one by April. “We’ll go through the sculptors list and narrow it down to four or five candidates for interviews that we’ll do within the next month,” Smyre said on Jan. 11. Sculptor Andy Davis, 53, who was picked 12 days before his death to create the King statue, was killed in an accident near his home in Henry County on July 11, 2015. The 8-foot bronze statue will stand on the northeast corner of the Capitol, a short distance from Auburn Avenue, site of King’s birth home, where he grew up; Ebenezer Baptist Church, where he was co-pastor with his father; the headquarters of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which he co-founded; and home to the King Center, established by his widow, the late Coretta Scott King, to carry on the work he started. Smyre said it will likely sit on a pedestal inscribed with quotes from King speeches and sermons on all four sides. House Bill 1080, or the King Monument Bill, which authorized the long-anticipated memorial to the late civil rights leader and Georgia native son, was signed into law on

State and King Estate officials are vetting a list of 22 sculptors to create a statue of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for the Georgia State Capitol after the death of sculptor Andy Davis.

April 29, 2014, by Gov. Nathan Deal. Smyre, who has served in the Georgia House for 42 years, said that this time around, the sculptor search process is a bit more complicated. “Someone recommended Andy and we eventually chose him on the strength of his work, especially the sculpture of [music legend] Ray Charles in Albany, Ga.,” Smyre said. Davis also was willing to do the King project at cost, and Smyre said he left behind a prototype sculpted image of King that the civil rights leader’s family likes.

Smyre said it’s not clear whether the new sculptor will start from scratch or build on Davis’ work. “Lot of sculptors have pride of authorship so that’s hopefully something that we can work through,” he said. Once the sculptor is identified, Smyre said it will be a six- to eight-month process to have the statue completed. “Ideally we would love to unveil the work at a major event like the King Advisory Commission’s annual MLK tribute to be hosted by Gov. Nathan Deal at the Capitol during King Week 2017,” he said.

“ .

The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically.

INTELLIGENCE PLUS CHARACTER

”

- that is the goal of true education. ~ Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Equal Opportunity Institution

www.gptc.edu 404-297-9522

CrossRoadsNews

January 16, 2016

King Holiday

The ecumenical service, hallmark of the King Holiday Observance, engages members of various religious traditions and governments.

Stellar line up for King Day Eecumenical Service at Ebenezer The Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II, president of the North Carolina NAACP, will give the keynote address at the 31st annual Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Service on Jan. 18 at Ebenezer Baptist Church. The ecumenical service, which is the hallmark of the King Holiday Observance, engages William Barber II members of various religious traditions and local, state, national and international governments. It begins at 10 a.m. in the Horizon Sanctuary on historic Auburn Avenue. It is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Ambassador Jeffrey D eL aurent is, charge d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, will attend, and there will be performances by gospel recording artist Anthony Jeffrey DeLaurentis Brown and “America’s Got Talent” contestant Heavenly Joy-Jerkins. Barber, pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, N.C., is convener

Heavenly Joy-Jerkins (left) and gospel recording artist Anthony Brown will perform at the King Commemorative Service on Jan. 18 at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.

of the Historic Thousands on Jones Street Peoples Assembly Coalition, a broad alliance of more than 140 progressive organizations with more than two million members who champion a 14-point anti-racism, antipoverty, anti-war agenda. He and the coalition aided in the passage of North Carolina’s Racial Justice Act of 2009, which allowed death row inmates to appeal

their sentences on the grounds of racial bias in the court system. The coalition also successfully advocated for voting reforms such as same-day registration and early voting and reframed marriage equality as a civil rights issue and helped mobilize black churches to support a ballot initiative in 2012. He has mobilized the Forward Together Moral Monday Movement, a multiracial,

multigenerational movement of thousands for protests at the N.C. General Assembly and around the state. Gov. Beverly Purdue presented Barber with the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina’s highest citizenship award. Ebenezer Baptist Church is at 407 Auburn Ave. N.E. in Atlanta. Visit www.thekingcenter.org or call 404-526-8968.

Paraders marching to remember King Hundreds of indiviudals and groups will march in parades in Decatur and Atlanta on the Jan. 18 National King Holiday remembering and commemorating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In Decatur, the DeKalb NAACP’s 14th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parade and Rally kicks off at 11 a.m. at Green Pastures Christian Ministries, 5455 Flat Shoals Parkway in Decatur. Marchers will make a right on MLK Jr. Parkway/Highway 155 and parade to MLK Jr. High in Lithonia. Grand marshall for this year’s parade is lifelong NAACP member and former DeKalb School Board member Sarah Copelin-Wood, who coordinated the parade and rally for years. Marchers will report at the church S. Copelin-Wood at 9:30 a.m. To register for the march, visit http:// youcondev.com/MLKRegistrations.aspx or call 404-241-8006.

Downtown Atlanta parade Atlanta’s annual King Week Holiday March & Rally gets under way at 2 p.m. on Jan. 18. Marchers will assemble at 1:15 p.m. at Peachtree Street and Baker (Xernona Clayton Way) Street. This year’s march will focus on education, technology, medical, investment, transportation, housing environmental justice, job creation, conflict resolution, interfaith, cultural exchange, peace, justice, and voter registration. For more information and to register, visit www.mlkmarchcommittee.com.

Georgia Power employees

Georgia Power is proud to observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day – a nationwide celebration of service to mankind and community – by encouraging its employees and customers to use their time off to serve others.

Free admission to parks, museums

On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, let us all come together to spend a “day on“ by extending a helping hand to help those who need it most.

National parks, including the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, are offering free admission in honor of King Day on Jan. 18. Admission also is free at the Atlanta History Center, Centennial Olympic Games Museum and the Margaret Mitchell House, where the epic “Gone With the Wind” novel was written. For more information, visit www. events12.com/atlanta/january.

CELEBRATING A DAY ON AND NOT A DAY OFF

Connect With Us

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King Holiday

CrossRoadsNews

January 16, 2016

“Our nation has dynamic and creative philanthropic projects – those being honored are a powerful example.”

Coretta Scott King, shown with husband Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., established and awarded the King Center’s Salute to Greatness Award in 1983 to honor her husband’s legacy.

Salute to Greatness Gala honors King-like qualities Farmer and philanthropist Howard G. Buffett and TIAACREF will be honored at the King Center’s Salute to Greatness Awards Gala on Jan. 16 at the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta. My Brother’s Keeper Task Force, a signature White House initiative of President Barack Roger Ferguson Edith Jennings Broderick Johnson Maya Penn Obama, will be given a special Howard Buffett award. The annual gala, which begins at 7 p.m., is the center’s Buffett is being recognized for his work to improve the primary fundraising initiative, and the award recognizes standard of living and quality of life for the world’s most national and/or international individuals and corporations impoverished and marginalized populations. that exemplify excellence in their leadership and have demTIAA-CREF is being honored for its philanthropic efonstrated a commitment to social responsibility in the spirit forts, dedication to diversity in the workplace, and commitof Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ment to education, including service its employees provide Dr. Bernice A. King, King Center CEO, said the center is through the Employee Giving Campaign. Roger W. Ferguson honored to spotlight such individuals and corporations. Jr., president and CEO, will accept the award. “Our nation has dynamic and creative philanthropic The Coretta Scott King A.N.G.E.L. – Advancing Nonprojects – those being honored are a powerful example of violence Through Generations of Exceptional Leadership how focusing humanitarian efforts, in a single geographic – Award also will be presented. It recognizes a youth or location, helps to transform lives,” she said. young adult ages 12-25 and a youth organization/initiative The Salute to Greatness Award was established and that exemplifies exceptional leadership in the areas of peace, awarded for the first time in 1983 by Coretta Scott King. social justice and nonviolent social change.

Youth honoree is fashion designer and cartoonist Maya Penn, founder of Maya’s Ideas, for her commitment to education, bridging the digital divide, focus on environmental preservation, and concern for humanity. The youth organization honoree is Sojourn to the Past, established by Jeff Steinberg. It was selected because of its Jeff Steinberg commitment to educating and empowering young people to gain a greater understanding and knowledge of the impact and importance of the civil rights movement in this country. The Christine King Farris Legacy of Service Award, which recognizes individuals who have a lifelong history of service and exemplify the values based on the leadership philosophy of King and his methods of nonviolence, will be given to civil rights pioneer Edith Savage Jennings. My Brother’s Keeper Task Force is being honored for its commitment to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color. Broderick Johnson, task force chair and assistant to the president, will accept the award. The hotel is at 265 Peachtree St. N.E. For tickets and more information, visit www.thekingcenter.org or call 404-5268968 or 404-526-8911.

Morehouse most famous graduate celebrated with talk, rally and more Morehouse College is celebrating its most famous graduate, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., with a march, conversations, discussions, an open house and the screening of a powerful documentary on the civil rights movement. The college, which welcomed the precocious 15-year-old King as an early-admission student in September 1944, kicks off its commemoration of his 87th birthday with a Communitywide Interfaith Harmony March and Rally on Jan. 17. King, a sociology major, graduated from Morehouse in 1948. His father, grandfather, brother and his two sons are all Morehouse men. The “Embracing the Beloved World Community” march kicks off at 2 p.m. from Sisters Chapel at Spelman College and will terminate at the King statue on the plaza at Morehouse. On the Jan. 18 King Day, Morehouse students will participate in service projects as part of the federal holiday’s Day of Service.

L e w i s , t he 5th District representative who worked with King in the 1960s civil rights movement, will offer insights on civil and human rights Delman Coates John Lewis Otis Moss Jr. Otis Moss III and reflect on the Projects begin at 8 a.m. and are sponsored by 1960s and today’s challenges. On Jan. 22, students will have a “Public the Bonner Office of Community Service. On Jan. 21, the Rev. Dr. Delman Coates, Conversation With the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss a Morehouse ’95 graduate, will speak on Jr. ’56 and the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III ’92” at “The Black Church and LGBTQ Rights: A 4 p.m. in the Bank of America Auditorium, Quest for the Beloved World Community” Massey Center. The topic is “Generation to at the Martin Luther King Jr. Crown Forum. Generation: Who’s Got Next?” Moss Jr., who was co-pastor of Ebenezer It starts at 11 a.m. at the Bank of America Auditorium, Shirley A. Massey Executive Baptist with the Rev. Martin Luther King Sr., is pastor emeritus at Olivet Institutional Conference Center. Later that day at 6 p.m., students will Baptist in Cleveland. His son, Moss III, is spend “An Evening With Rep. John Lewis” in senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center.

On Jan. 26, the Morehouse College Martin Luther King Jr. Collection is hosting an Open House at 3 p.m. at the Archives Research Center, Atlanta University Center, Robert W. Woodruff Library. Participants can join Dr. Vicki L. Crawford, director of the Morehouse King Collection, and the library archival staff for an overview of the collection and viewing of selected documents. On Jan. 27, the documentary “Soundtrack for a Revolution” that tells the story of the U.S. civil rights movement will be screened at 6 p.m. in Dansby Hall, Room 200. The 2009 film uses the freedom songs of protesters on picket lines, in mass meetings, and in jail cells as they fought for justice and equality. The 2016 commemoration culminates on Jan. 29 with the King Legacy Scholarship Fundraiser at 6 p.m. in the Massey Center. For tickets and more information, contact kevin.booker@morehouse.edu or 404-6537893.

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King Holiday

CrossRoadsNews

January 16, 2016

At Lou Walker Senior Center, Kaiser Permanente workers will provide basic housekeeping services, paint, and host a mini health fair.

Volunteers embrace King’s message of service On Feb. 4, 1968, two months to the day before he was killed on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tenn., on April 4, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. told a packed Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta how he wanted to be remembered when he died. “I’d like for somebody to say that day that Martin Luther King Jr. tried to love somebody,” he said. “I want you to say that day that I tried to be right on the war question. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry. And I want you to be able to say that day that I did try in my life to clothe those who were naked. “I want you to say on that day that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison. “I want you to say that I tried to love and serve humanity.” When his widow, Coretta Scott King, succeeded in her quest for a national King holiday to remember her husband, she declared the third Monday of January “A Day of Service.” And every year since then, volunteers in thousands of communities locally, nationally and worldwide honor King’s memory by helping others. The 2016 King holiday on Jan. 18 is no different. Individuals, families and corporate employees will fan out across DeKalb, metro Atlanta, the nation and the world to make a difference in their neighborhoods. Volunteers will paint, spray wash, repair, rake and trim the grounds and buildings of nonprofits, the disadvantaged and other sites; collect and repackage rice for refugees; facilitate discussions about tolerance; and participate in other service projects. At the Lou Walker Senior Center in Lithonia, more than 100 Kaiser Permanente employees and clinicians will provide basic housekeeping services, paint and host a mini health fair for adults 55 and older from 8 a.m. to noon. The health fair, offering adult medicine, geriatrics, nutrition, and pharmacy, begins at 9:30 a.m. Bettye Davis, the senior center’s director, said the Kaiser Permanente Day of Service Project at the center will include pressure washing the front of the building that opened Jan. 6, 2006; sprucing up the center’s aquatic area and locker and exercise rooms; and deep cleaning the gym floors with environmentally friend products. “This facility is 10 years old,” Davis said. “We are so excited about the resources they are bringing here. They are going to replace

‘Say that I tried to love

Students from Georgia Perimeter College clean the summit of Arabia Mountain in 2015 to protect solution pits in the granite surface that are the habitat for endangered species.

Panola Mountain State Park cleanup project Volunteers can help clean up at Panola Mountain State Park on Jan. 18 as part of the park’s National Day of Service dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The project takes place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers must come prepared to

some of the old floor moldings and ceiling tiles, and they are going to remove dirt and grime that have built up over the last decade.” For the health fair, Davis said seniors should bring all their medicine to discuss drug reaction. There also will be screenings for diabetes, hypertension and cholesterol. Seniors don’t have be Lou Walker members to participate. For more information, contact Davis at 770-322-2900.

First Afrikan Church projects First Afrikan Presbyterian Church’s Creation Care and Property Commission will be hosting a “Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service Day” project with Hands On Atlanta from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers will beautify the church’s Vanessa G. Knight building and work in the First Afrikan Community Garden. The church is at 5197 Salem Road in Lithonia. For more information, call Elder Lucius Gundy at 404-735-7626.

work and bring water, sturdy shoes, and work gloves. Pre-registration is required – call the Nature Center at 770-389-7801. The park is at 2620 Highway 155 S.W. in Stockbridge. For more information, visit http://gastateparks.org/PanolaMountain.

Hands On Atlanta opportunities The nonprofit Hands On Atlanta, which coordinates volunteer opportunities across metro Atlanta, has a host of opportunities at local elementary schools, Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Power & Potential, Habitat for Humanity, Trees Atlanta, and Keep North Fulton Beautiful. MLK Day of Service volunteer opportunities are available at www.handsonatlanta. org. They include: Helping seniors in Decatur More than 1,000 volunteers will work at senior citizens’ homes in the Oakhurst community making greatly needed repairs and doing yardwork that elderly homeowners have been unable to do or afford. The 14th Annual King Day Service Project is sponsored by the city of Decatur in partnership with the Decatur Preservation Alliance. Shifts are available from Saturday, Jan. 16,

Teams of volunteers picked up trash and debris in downtown Lithonia for a 2015 King Day of Service cleanup project in collaboration with Keep DeKalb Beautiful.

“If any of you are around when I have t want a long funeral. And if you get somebody to deliver the e talk too long. And every now and then I wonder what them not to mention that I have a Nobel P important. Tell them not to mention that I have thre awards – that’s not important. Tell them n went to school. I’d like somebody to mention that day th life serving others. I’d like for somebody to say that day that body. I want you to say that day that I tried to I want you to be able to say that day tha And I want you to be able to say that day were naked. I want you to say on that day that I di prison. I want you to say that I tried to love and – Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Feb. 4 through Monday, Jan. 18. Volunteers meet at the Solarium at the Community Center of South Decatur. The project takes place 1 to 5 p.m. on Jan. 16 and Jan. 17 and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 1 to 5 p.m. on Jan 18. Highly skilled amateurs and tradespeople, especially roofers, plumbers, electricians and carpenters, are crucial to this effort. Help with logistics, gardening, landscaping, and the food committee also is needed, To sign up for a shift, visit www.mlkserviceproject.com/volunteers or contact Lee Ann Harvey at leeann.harvey@decaturga.com or 678-553-6548. Unskilled volunteers and anyone over the age of 12, including supervised Boy Scout or Girl Scout troops, are also welcome. Volunteers younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian sign a release form and bring it with them to the project. Volunteers are encouraged to bring tools like hammers, saws and drills, rakes, clippers, loppers and other yardwork implements and to mark them for identification purposes. To make this project more environmentally friendly, volunteers also are asked to bring a reusable water bottle. After the work, a celebration cookout for volunteers takes place on Jan. 18 at 5 p.m. at the Solarium. The food committee is seeking donations of sandwiches and homemade desserts to feed the hundreds of hungry volunteers. For more information, visit www.mlkserviceproject.com/volunteers/#sthash.5D1jwtpc. dpuf.

Readers needed for elementary school Twenty-seven volunteers, who are at least 18, can read to kindergarten through second-grade students at Whitefoord Elementary School on Jan. 26. The Project Open Dialogue MLK Reading Day

Georgia Perimeter College student Gayle Sutton assists with a bingo game at the Mountain View Personal Care Home in Decatur in 2015.

January 16, 2016

King Holiday

CrossRoadsNews

The Human Rights Campaign and Lost-n-Found Youth are collecting clothing, toiletries and gift cards for metro homeless youth.

e by helping others around their communities Rice for Refugees Project Youth and adults are gathering on Jan. 18 at Rock of Ages in Stone Mountain to work on Lutheran Day of Service projects, Rice for Refugees and Teaching Summit on Immigration and Tolerance, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Participants are asked to collect and bring bags of rice that will be repackaged into family-sized bags for distribution to newly arrived families being resettled by Lutheran Services of Georgia. Bring a box of quart-size zip-lock bags for each five pounds of rice collected. The teaching summit is designed to open up dialogue and build understanding about Islam in local churches and the community. The church is at 5135 Memorial Drive. To sign up and for more information, visit http://www.allforgood.org/volunteer/opportunity/13255.

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Indian Creek Elementary in Clarkston was spruced up by members of Jack and Jill of AmericaStone Mountain who painted the halls for King Day 2015.

Project Open Dialogue is Hands On Atlanta’s newest initiative that is training id try in my life to visit those who were in volunteers to engage children in ways that build a vocabulary of expression through d serve humanity.” reading, thoughtful conversation and active listening. 4, 1968, Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta The school is at 35 Whitefoord Ave. S.E. in Atlanta. Registration is required at www. takes place from 8 to 10:30 a.m. handsonatlanta.org/HOC__Volunteer_OpIt is one of several Ready Days being held in portunity_Details_Page?id=a0C1200000nI January and February in honor of Martin Luther w9xEAC&wrs=HOC0008-002-d91d8c02King Jr. Day and Black History Month. aba8-4fa0-90d2-d2bd20102325.

Cleanup at Leila Mason Park in Shermantown Volunteers clear away brush from historic Shermantown Cemetery as part of a Day of Service for King Day on Jan. 19, 2015.

Leila Mason Park in the historic AfricanAmerican Shermantown neighborhood in the Village of Stone Mountain will get a cleanup on the Jan. 18 King holiday. The three-hour King Day community service project begins at 8:30 a.m. Volunteers will clean, paint and spruce up the park’s baseball field, basketball court, playground equipment and three pavilions with picnic tables. Wear work clothes and bring work gloves, paintbrushes and rollers.

If the weather is below 45 degrees, volunteers will go to Plan B – picking up trash throughout Shermantown. The park is at 5510 Stillhouse Road near Shermantown Cemetery. To volunteer, visit http://www.allforgood. org/volunteer/opportunity/13319. For more information, visit www.stonemountaincity.org or contact Steve Wells at stonemountainwells@gmail.com or 803447-1632.

Clarkston Community Center The nonprofit Clarkston Community Center needs up to 50 volunteers to help clean up the community center’s activity field, organic garden, and art supply room. Its King Day service project, which takes place 9 a.m. to noon on Jan. 18, will help the immigrants, refugees, ethnic groups and other residents served by the center at 701 College Ave. in Clarkston. Volunteers must be at least 13 with adult supervision. Sign up at www.handsonatlanta.org/ HOC__Volunteer_Opportunity_Search_Pa ge?dstnc=0&k=mlk+day&p=Se&z=30034. For more information, visit www.clarkstoncommunitycenter.org or call 404-5081050.

Collection drive for homeless youth Residents can donate clothing, toiletries and gift cards for metro homeless youth during the Human Rights Campaign and Lost-nFound Youth’s King Day service project. The nonprofit groups are targeting LGBT youth who they say make up 40 percent of homeless and at-risk youth. Items to donate can be purchased through a Wish List at http://www.hrc.org/ events/mlk-day-of-service-in-atlanta. To organize a donation drive at work, school, or place of worship, contact HRC Atlanta MLK Day of Service project manager Melinda Greene at MelindaHRC@gmail. com. Donated items labeled “MLK DOS” also can be dropped off Monday-Saturday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Lost-n-Found Youth, 2585 Chantilly Drive. N.E. in Atlanta. For more information, visit hrc.org/mlkdayofservice.

Tree plantings for King’s first resting place Tree lovers can plant trees on Jan. 18 in South-View Cemetery in Atlanta where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was first buried. The South-View project is one of several Trees Atlanta Day of Service projects that include tree plantings at the Atlanta Center for Medical Research and Adair Park. King was buried at South-View in 1968. His body was relocated in 1977 to the King Center on Auburn Avenue. His parents, Martin Luther King Sr. and Alberta King, are buried at South-View Cemetery, 1990 Jonesboro Road S.E. For more information, visit https:// treesatlanta.org/event/martin-lutherking-jr-day-2.

Celebrating the Dreamer! We must face our challenges today with the same strength, persistence, and resolve as Dr. King, guided by the enduring values of hope & justice embodied by our civil rights leaders – like C.T. Vivian, Dr. Joseph Lowery, Andy Young, and my friend & colleague Congressman John Lewis. Congressman Henry “Hank” Johnson 4th Congressional District Paid for by the Committee to Re-elect Henry “Hank” Johnson

King Holiday

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January 16, 2016

The award is named for King’s “Drum Major Instinct” speech delivered at Ebenezer Baptist two months before his assassination.

Gregory and Betty Levett to get 2016 Drum Major Award Funeral home businessman Gregory B. Levett and his wife, Betty, are getting the 2016 Drum Major Award on Jan. 18 at New Bethel AME Church’s 15th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major Award Celebration. The Levetts are owners of Gregory B. Levett & Sons Funeral Homes & Crematory, which operates four facilities in Decatur, Scottdale, Lawrenceville and Buford. They opened their first funeral home in 1980 in Scottdale. Levett’s father started the family business in Conyers in 1950. The ceremony, whose theme is “Standing for Righteousness,” is held in honor of the late civil rights leader. It starts at 2 p.m. The church, lead by Pastor Richard Allen Washington Sr., also is honoring Dr. Jerry and the Rev. Adella Brewster with its Gregory B. Levett, and his wife, Betty, will Pillar of Strength Award for their decades receive the 2016 Drum Major Award on Jan. of service. 18 at New Bethel AME Church in Lithonia.

Church member Carol McNeil will receive the Women of Courage Award for her years of service with the church’s Sankofa Ministry. State Rep. Karen Bennett is getting the Community Service Award. Lithonia civil rights attorney Gary Parker, a former state senator and death penalty opponent, will deliver the keynote address. The award, named for King’s “Drum Major Instinct” speech delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church on Feb. 4, 1968, two months before his assassination on April 4, 1968, acknowledges the work and life of King and recognizes the unsung foot soldiers who continue to carry the torch and fulfill the dream. In the speech, King encouraged his congregation to seek greatness, but to do so through service and love. He concluded

the sermon by imagining his own funeral, downplaying his accomplishments and emphasizing that he had lived in his life in service to others. “If you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice,” King told the congregation. “Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter,” he said. The celebration is sponsored annually by the New Bethel AME Church Lay Organization, led by President Judy Fultz. The church’s MLK Committee is chaired by Zelma Pressley. The celebration, held on the national King holiday, is free to attend. New Bethel is at 8350 Rockbridge Road in Lithonia. For more information, visit www. cbtwatl.org or call 770-484-3350.

Teen artists explore civil rights challenges in King Day production Teen artists in the Alliance Theatre’s Palefsky Collision Project will explore the issues and ideas that challenge their generation at performances beginning on Jan. 17. They revisit the 2015 production “Troubling Our House: In Search of the Beautiful Stranger,” explore themes found in the classic play “Inherit the Wind,” and examine current civil rights issues in the United States. The student artists collaborated with playwright Pearl Cleage and director Patrick McColery to re-imagine the original script through the lens of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s message of hope and peace amid civil unrest. The performances take place: n Jan. 17 – Rich Auditorium at the Woodruff Arts Center as part of the free Woodruff Family Fun Day. It begins at 2:30 p.m. R.S.V.P. is required. For free tickets, visit at http://www.alliancetheatre.org/content/current-

project. n Jan. 18 – A special performance at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, 11 a.m. (requires admission to the museum). n Jan. 18 – Rich Auditorium, 2:30 p.m. Additional events: n Jan. 18 – ArtsVibe Teen MLK Day Poetry Slam, 3:30to-6 p.m. in Rich Auditorium. Free to attend. For more information, visit www.artsvibe.com. n Through Feb. 5 – ArtsVibe Teen Voices for Social Justice Exhibit. A photography and works on paper exhibition surrounding themes on social justice and civil and human rights at 1280 Gallery, first floor of the Memorial Arts Building. For more information, visit www.artsvibe. com/teen-voices-for-social-justice-exhibition. The arts center is at 1280 Peachtree St. N.E. in Atlanta. Visit http://alliancetheatre.org or call 404-733-4601.

The Alliance Theatre’s Palefsky Collision Project will be on stage at Woodruff Arts Center and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights during the King holiday.

NEW CARD!

Effective

January 9, 2016 MARTA converts to a more secure Breeze Card and the Breeze Ticket returns.

Breeze Card Changes for Regular Fare Customers The cost of new silver Breeze Card will be $2 and will be valid for 3 years. SILVER CARDS will be available for FREE with card registration at the RideStores January 2016!*

(Mon. the 11th – Fri. the 29th, weekdays only)

*BLUE CARDS will no longer be usable after July 9th, 2017 *Breeze Tickets Return! The cost of the Breeze Ticket will be $1

Questions? Visit www.itsmarta.com or 404-848-5000. Information regarding company, school, or university issued cards will be provided at a later date by your company or school.

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January 16, 2016

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Comcast® celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by honoring his strength to love — even when the law was against him. On this day, we remind everyone of the power of love and serving one another.

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CrossRoadsNews

King Holiday

January 16, 2016

“We welcome the public to come out and join us for this special event honoring Lynwood and Brookhaven’s proud history.”

Georgia NAACP president to keynote Emory’s King Day fete The Rev. Dr. Francys Johnson, president of the Georgia NAACP, is the featured speaker at Emory University’s King Week celebration and community service awards program on Jan. 21. The theme of the program, which begins at 4:30 p.m., is “Refusing the New Normal: Being a Part of the Change.” This year’s honorees are the Atlanta Children’s Shelter, Books for Keeps, Covenant House Georgia, Georgia Law Center for the Homeless, the Health Initiative, Intown Collaborative Ministries, Kelly Francys Johnson On My Mind, New American Pathways, Marjy Stagmeier, Street Smart Youth Project, and Warrick Dunn Charities. The program, which takes place in the auditorium of the Claudia Nance Rollins Building in the Rollins School of Public Health, includes performances by Emory’s AHANA A Cappella – African, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American – as well as spoken word artist Paula Fontana, a career coach

Pembroke and Magnolia Missionary Baptist in Statesboro. Johnson is the convener of the Moral Monday Georgia Movement, a multiissue, multiracial, nonpartisan coalition of organizations aimed at restoring positive morality to public discourse, policy and politics. For more than 23 years, the Rollins School of Public Health and the Goizueta Business School have honored King’s legacy through the Martin Luther King Jr. Paula Fontana Community Service Awards Program. It grew out of a 1993 conversation between Dr. Joyce Essien and Ray Greenburg, then dean of the School of Emory’s AHANA A Cappella group will perform at its Jan. 21 King Week celebration and community service awards program. Public Health, and an agreement between the two to align the mission and values of Public Health with the precepts of social justice. in the Goizueta Business School at Emory. The Rollins School of Public Health is at 1518 Clifton Johnson, who was elected state president in October 2013 at age 34, is the youngest person to hold that office. He is a Road N.E. in Atlanta. For more information, visit www. civil rights attorney and pastor of Mount Moriah Baptist in emory.edu.

Lynwood Park students who integrated DeKalb Schools to be honored By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

Seventeen students from the all-black Lynwood Park High and Elementary School who integrated DeKalb County Schools in 1967 will be recognized at a Jan. 18 Martin Luther King Jr. Dinner by the city of Brookhaven. The men and women – called the Lynwood Integrators – were the first black students to attend Cross Keys and Chamblee high schools, 13 years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1954 that racial segregation of public schools was illegal. Students who followed them in 1968 and 1969 before the School District closed the black school and other Lynwood Park High and Elementary School alumni also are expected to attend the dinner that is open to the community. The dinner, held on the national holiday that honors the civil rights icon, takes place at 5 p.m. at the Lynwood Community Center. This week, some of the students remembered the hostile environment they went into in 1967. Barbara Shaw, one of the 17, went to the eighth grade at Cross Keys High. She remembers being terrified every day. Lynwood Park, DeKalb’s oldest black neighborhood, is located off Peachtree Road in Brookhaven. It dates back to 1933 when the first black family moved into the Cates Estate, later renamed Lynwood Park, after Realtor Mel

“It took all of these years for someone to recognize that technically we weren’t treated right.” Barbara Shaw

Lynn. Shaw’s parents, Peter and Frankie Scott, moved to Lynwood Park in 1954 and raised 15 children there. In the late 1950s, they had eight children at Lynwood Park High and Elementary School. They lived on Osborne Road, one of 10 streets in the community. Shaw, who used to walk to the black school, had to ride a school bus to the all-white Cross Keys High that was five miles away. She said the white bus driver clearly did not want to drive them. “He drove that bus much too fast,” she recalled. Shaw remembers the threats from some of the white students, the treatment of prejudiced teachers, and the fights that broke out daily. She remembers vividly the day her father had to come and pick her up from school after a group of white male students threatened her and the other black students with violence. He ended up escorting her to school for weeks until things settled down. Now Shaw feels honored that someone is

��n� there comes a �me when we must take a posi�on that is neither sa�e, nor poli�c, nor popular, but one must take it because it is right”.

recognizing what they went through. “It took all of these years for someone to recognize that technically we weren’t treated right,” she said on Jan. 12. By the time she graduated in 1970, Shaw said things had settled down to where black students were able to play on the basketball and football teams and be part of the band, chorus and 4-H Club. “We even had cheerleaders and people on the drill team,” she said. “It wound up being an OK school.” Still after she left Cross Keys, those early memories kept her from visiting the school for any reason until just two years ago. During the Jan. 18 MLK Day Dinner, the city of Brookhaven will present a proclamation to Lynwood Integrators and it will facilitate a discussion about their experiences. Students who left the Lynwood Park schools in 1968 and 1969 for the white schools also are expected. DeKalb Schools shuttered the Lynwood Park schools in 1969. The MLK Dinner came about after Brookhaven’s District 1 Councilwoman Linley Jones, who represents the community, brought a city proclamation last December to the 99-year-old Little Vine Missionary Baptist Church for U.S. Army Gen. Richard N. Dix and discovered Lynwood Park’s rich history. The church was recognizing Dix, who grew up in Lynwood Park, for his accomplishments. Jones enlisted Shaw’s help to organize the Black History event. At Monday’s dinner,

she will present the city proclamation to the “Integrators.” “We welcome the public to come out and join us for this special event honoring Lynwood and Brookhaven’s proud history,” Jones said. The public also is asked to loan photos and memorabilia from the Lynwood schools to display at the event. For more information, call 404-637-0508. Shaw is not sure how many old classmates will make it to the recognition dinner. “Maybe 10 or more,” she said. On Tuesday, Ann Marie Quill, Brookhaven’s communication manager, sent a list of 22 Lynwood Park schools alumni who had responded so far. They are Eldredge Jackson, Steve Daniel, Deborah Field, Peter Scott, Cassandra Bryant, Alfred Juban, Margaret Sawyer, Frances White, Elizabeth Bray, Mariah Richardson, Gary McDaniel, Sam Hudson, Charlie Richardson, Terry Sawyer, Audrey Coltus, Victor Martin, Barbara Scott, Faye Ricker, Eugenia Calloway, Barbara Howard, Ann Sawyer and Marion Johnson. Shaw said alums of the Lynwood Park schools include comedian George Wallace, his nephew Steve Wallace who retired from the San Francisco 49ers, and Olympic gold medalist Mel Pender. The community center, where the dinner is being held, is the old segregated elementary and high school building. Tickets for the dinner are on sale at the center, 3360 Osborne Road. Call 404-637-0534.

Don’t let anything stand in your way

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We celebrate his memory and legacy during the 31st Anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

In the spirit of greatness, we salute those who refuse to let adversity deter them from their dreams. Commissioner Sharon Barnes Sutton, District 4 1300 Commerce Drive, 5th Floor, Decatur, GA 30030 (404) 371-4907 www.SharonBarnesSutton.com

2346 Candler Road • Decatur, GA 30032 • 404.284.1888 • www.crossroadsnews.com

King Holiday

Amelia Boynton Robinson

Jamal-Harrison Bryant

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January 16, 2016

The shoes used to create the footprints also will be on display during the ceremony and the unveiling.

Frederick D. Haynes III

Jim Holley

Gordon L. Joyner

Raphael Gamaliel Warnock

Six activists’ footprints to join Civil Rights Walk of Fame The footprints of a 1960s civil rights warrior, four pastors and a lawyer will be added to the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame in Atlanta on Jan. 22. The newest honorees are Dr. Amelia Boynton Robinson, Dr. Jamal-Harrison Bryant, the Rev. Dr. Frederick D. Haynes III, the Rev. Dr. Jim Holley, Gordon L. Joyner, and the Rev. Dr. Raphael Gamaliel Warnock. Their footprints will join 86 others that have been inducted since 2005. The Walk of Fame, which honors activists involved in the 1950s and 1960s civil rights movement and others involved in the struggle for civil rights, was created in 2004. It is located at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta in the historic Auburn Avenue district. The 2016 induction ceremony takes place at 10 a.m. on Jan. 22 at Ebenezer Baptist Church, 101 Jackson St. in Atlanta, during the 2016 Trumpet Awards festivities. The event is hosted by Trumpet Awards Foundation member Danny Bakewell. The International Civil Rights Walk of

Fame gives recognition to the foot soldiers of justice who sacrificed and struggled to help make equality a reality for all Americans. The shoes used to create the footprints also will be on display during the ceremony and the unveiling, which are both free and open to the public. Boynton Robinson, a Savannah native who died in August at the age of 104, was a civil rights activist from the Selma, Ala., movement. She crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in her wheelchair holding hands with President Barack Obama in April as part of the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, the day Alabama state troopers beat back her and other marchers, including U.S. Rep. John Lewis, who were attempting to cross the bridge on a march for voting rights for blacks. In 1990, she was awarded the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Medal. Bryant, founder and pastor of the Empowerment Temple AME Church in Baltimore, is a philanthropist, author and motivational speaker.

Haynes, pastor of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas, is a committed community activist who formed alliances with local leaders and Dallas city officials to fight violence. Under his leadership, the church grew from 100 members in 1983 to more than 12,000 today. Holley is pastor of Historic Little Rock Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit. His “ministry of liberation” began in 1972 at the church that was founded in 1936. Holley is a sought-after pastor/businessman in Detroit and is rated among Michigan’s top five ministers by the Detroit Free Press. He is a 2010 Trumpet Award recipient. Holley is a committed Christian, eloquent preacher, scholar, and compassionate pastor and a loyal friend to those who have no voice in the affairs of the community. He said he believes “the will of God will never lead you where the grace of God cannot keep you.” Joyner, a lawyer and former Fulton County commissioner, served as executive director and administrator of the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity for 11 years. He

has been recognized for his leadership by two U.S. presidents, five Georgia governors, and two city of Atlanta mayors. Warnock is pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church where he is a defender of civil and human rights and has taken on the contradictions of the criminal justice system through his fierce public advocacy. The Civil Rights Walk of Fame is the brainchild of Xernona Clayton, founder and executive producer of the Trumpet Awards and a civil rights figure in her own right. It is a walkable promenade with actual footstep impressions of its honorees marked in granite and bronze. The National Park Service, which runs the historic site, said the Walk of Fame was created “to give recognition to those courageous soldiers of justice who sacrificed and struggled to make equality a reality for all.” The Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site is at 450 Auburn Ave. N.E. in Atlanta. For more information, visit http://www. nps.gov/features/malu/feat0002/wof.

DeKalb County State Court Judges

Commemorating the 31st Anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Seated, from left: Janis Gordon, Alvin Wong, Wayne Purdom, Johnny Panos, Dax López Standing: Ronald Ramsey, Keisha Storey, Mike Jacobs, Stacey Hydrick, Shondeana Crews-Morris, Brian Ross

commemorate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

(404) 656‐0287

howard.mosby@house.ga.gov

We have more Dreams to Achieve...

“Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream”

CrossRoadsNews

January 16, 2016