Tag Archive for: #mlk

TownTalk: Things To Know For Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

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Since 1986, the third Monday in January has been a federal holiday to honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. There are several opportunities to participate in discussions, events and opportunities to volunteer in the local area as part of this annual observance.

Schools will be closed, as will libraries, post offices and banks, and some area non-profits are encouraging individuals to volunteer to improve their communities.

Monday, Jan. 17 will be considered “a day of action” instead of just a day off from daily routines.

For the second year, the Granville County Human Relations Commission will hold its annual celebration virtually, but there are several ways to tune in. The event will begin at 7 a.m. and can be viewed on Spectrum Channel 17, the county government’s local access channel. Viewers can find the event on Facebook and Youtube as well.

Northern Granville Middle School, 3144 Webb School Road, Oxford, will be the site of a celebration Monday, Jan. 17 at 4 p.m. The event, sponsored by the local MLK Committee, is free and open to the public. Masks are required to be worn at the event.

Visit https://trianglemlk.com/ to learn about observances in the Triangle area, including a weath-laying ceremony at 9 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 14 to a memorial march in downtown Raleigh  beginning at 11 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 17.

Vance-Granville Community College will host a virtual panel discussion via Zoom on Tuesday, Jan. 25 at 6 p.m. as part of its MLK Jr. observance. Panelists will discuss using equity through social mobility.

Panelists will delve into the areas of education, finance, health and housing as it relates to Dr. King’s dream. “We will continue to focus on his dream by discussing racial justice through Civil Rights to economic justice through the Poor People’s Campaign which he sought near the end of his life,” according to information about the event released by VGCC.

Sponsors include: VGCC board of trustees, VGCC Men’s Achievement Academy, VGCC V.I.E.W. representative and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Register here to join the discussion. https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEucuCgqTIoHtIzZpC7RQSVSle52y8Wq9CS. Contact Dr. Jeffrey Allen at allenjl@vgcc.edu for more information.

Activate Good, a Triangle-based agency that helps volunteers connect with area non-profits that need volunteer help, has expanded upon the day of service concept to Dignity Week 2022 between Friday, Jan. 14 and Sunday, Jan. 23.
Visit https://activategood.org/event/97 to learn more or get ideas about how to volunteer in your community.

King’s philosophy of creating change through non-violent resistance resulted in sit-ins, peaceful demonstrations and marches in the 1950’s and 1960’s.

Although there are no records that indicate King visited locally, he did visit Raleigh, Durham and Greensboro, according to North Carolina Room specialist Mark Pace. And, in 1962, during a visit to Rocky Mount, he delivered a dress rehearsal of his now iconic “I Have A Dream” speech that was heard by more than 250,000 civil rights activists who gathered for the March on Washington in August 1963.

In 1964, he was the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. He was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968.

 

TownTalk 1-19-21: MLK Virtual Celebration VGCC Jan 26

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The public is invited to join a virtual panel discussion next week that will focus on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The event will be hosted by the Vance-Granville Community College Men’s Achievement Academy, with the support of Rho Beta Lambda of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., according to Dr. Jeffrey Allen, VGCC Dean of Student Retention and Success.

Allen appeared on Tuesday’s Town Talk with John C. Rose and gave details about the upcoming event, scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 26. Visit www.vgcc.edu to find a link to register for the Zoom panel discussion.

“We feel like we have assembled a great wealth of knowledge to discuss the life and legacy of Dr. King,” he said during an interview recorded earlier Tuesday morning.

Panelists include Dr. Jim Harper, Chair of the History Department at North Carolina Central University; Dr. Doris T. Williams, retired professor and VGCC Board of Trustees member; Rev. Dr. William T. Ramey, retired educator, pastor and VGCC Board of Trustees member; Judge Adam Keith, Vance County District Court judge; and Sara Bell, instructor of Humanities at VGCC. N.C. Rep. G.K. Butterfield also will give remarks, Allen said.

Although honoring the legacy of the slain Civil Rights leader is a large part of what the panel will discuss, he expects that the panelists also will challenge the attendees, “really pushing them to live the legacy of Dr. King,” he said. “The whole goal is we want to be informative, we want to empower people; and the other piece is we want to inspire people to continue to bring change,” he added.

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Empowering people to unite and to be a force for change are ideals King strived for, Allen said. “It’s our job now as citizens to carry his legacy, moving forward, so we can continue to fight the fight for civil rights for all,” he added.

Servant leadership is another of King’s ideals that Allen wants to emphasize.

“This is a great opportunity for us just to remind ourselves of his legacy of social justice and service to others and civil rights for all…(to) refresh our memory to go out and be empowered and inspired to do great things in our community,” Allen said.

This graphic and the cover graphic courtesy of VGCC.

Students in the Men’s Achievement Academy at VGCC experience servant leadership, Allen noted. The mentoring program is in its second year and, although it targets first-year students and minority males, it is open to any male who wants to be a part of the program.

The feedback so far has been positive, he said. “They love the program, they love participating, even in this virtual environment, they really appreciate the support that their mentors have given them during this pandemic,” Allen said.

Allen and his team plan and support a variety of initiatives, all designed to support students be successful in college. They oversee tutoring, academic advising and academic support, as well as counseling, student activities and athletics. “The college has done an excellent job…to support students and we’re continuously working and looking at thing that support student achievement.,” he said.

Register for the event at:

https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_aaujgLAHTHOqt07ZAcIKeg

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

For more information, contact Dr. Jeffrey Allen at allenjl@vgcc.edu.

(This is not a paid advertisement.)

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TownTalk 1-18-21: MLK Day of Service, Marcia Allen and Vance Dem Party

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Members of the Vance County Democratic Party and other local officials braved cool, breezy conditions Monday to demonstrate servant leadership by collecting non-perishable food items for two agencies.

Marcia Allen, chair of the Vance County Democratic Party, said the group sponsored the event in conjunction with the National Day of Service as part of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. All donated items will be given to Area Christians Together in Service (ACTS) and The Help Center of Vance County, Allen said during Monday’s Town Talk with John C. Rose.

“That’s our goal –   to let our community know that we care,” she said. “We have to care about each other. It doesn’t matter what your affiliation is… as a party, we care about each other, and we want to help as much as we can,” she explained.

These two agencies were chosen, Allen said, because they are receiving a lot of clients at this time. She recently toured the ACTS storage center and noted that “their cupboards are getting a little bare.” ACTS also serves lunch daily. Their efforts to fight food insecurity, as well as those of The Help Center, are worthy recipients of the food drive. “We want to make sure they at least have something on the shelves to share with the community,” Allen said.

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Didn’t make it to drop off a donation of food during the Monday drive? No problem. Allen said donations can be dropped off at Shear Magic, 1224 Dabney Drive and Angela Thornton, first vice-chair of the Vance County Democratic Party, will accept them any day except Monday, when the salon is closed.

Vance Sheriff Curtis Brame participated in the event, held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. outside the Perry Memorial Library. “It’s a great day,” he said, “and truly an honor to see different organizations, different denominations, people gathering peacefully, as Dr. Martin Luther King wanted us to,” Brame said. The food drive is a great cause, he added, as a way to honor the King legacy.

Henry L. Gupton, Vance County Clerk of Superior Court, agreed. “We don’t mind being in the cold for what we’re doing today,” he said. “Any day is a good day to serve,” Gupton said.

Recalling Dr. King’s message that everyone can be great because everyone can serve, Allen said that the work done to help in the community transcends political parties and other differences.  “If we look at each other as family, then we’re going to be kind, and cordial and helpful toward each other.”

The King holiday has been celebrated on the third Monday in January since its inception in 1986. The slain civil rights leader’s philosophy of peaceful protest and servant leadership remains relevant today, Allen said. “We should have that at the forefront of our being. We are here to serve – to serve each other.” And, she added, she will “still have this servant mentality tomorrow,” even though the holiday has passed.

Allen encouraged other Democrats to become active in the local party, noting that there are openings at the local precinct level. Contact Allen at vancedemocrat@gmail.com. The local party is planning to host monthly community projects as one way to increase service at the community level, she said.

Legacy of Martin Luther King discussed at VGCC

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— courtesy VGCC

Vance-Granville Community College hosted a program to discuss the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on Jan. 24, after being postponed due to winter weather. The discussion was sponsored by the college’s Minority Male Success Initiative and was held in the Civic Center on VGCC’s Main Campus.

VGCC Counselor Cathy Davis made remarks about the purpose of the event and the King holiday. She quoted the King Center, which said the observance commemorates Dr. King’s actions and words that “answered our collective longing to become a country that truly lived by its noblest principles.” Davis added, “The Minority Male Success Initiative invites you to commemorate this holiday by making your personal commitment to serve humanity, promote Dr. King’s teachings and carry forward his legacy.”

The program then featured VGCC student Angelica Bridges of Oxford presenting a powerful rendition of the song, “Rise Up.”

The featured speaker for the event was Roberta Scott, a longtime public school teacher and retired Adult High School coordinator for VGCC. Scott is currently a member of the Warren County Board of Education, an officer of the N.C. School Boards Association, and an advisor to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. In 1963, she participated in the March on Washington, at which Dr. King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

First, Scott described growing up in Washington, D.C, in an era when the nation’s capital was racially segregated, recalling the practices that restricted her access to certain restaurants, playgrounds, schools and even seats on trains. She then put the 1963 march in its political and historical context.

“Dr. King met with President John F. Kennedy, and he told the president about the severity of the injustices in the country,” Scott recalled. “Dr. King said we needed a civil rights bill. President Kennedy told him, ‘I understand, but we have so other many things going on’ and said it couldn’t get done right now.”

Scott said that, after that somewhat disappointing conversation with the president, King’s next move was “to organize a nonviolent march in Washington, the march to the Lincoln memorial, which Dr. King felt would be a fitting place.”

She remembered, “There were 250,000 people who marched that August 28 — people marching cheerfully, having conversations, and there was no violence whatsoever. You saw whole families, children marching with their parents. My husband and I were there, and our four-year-old daughter marched right along with us. It was a sight that you will never forget.”

“I don’t think President Kennedy expected Dr. King to really go back and organize such a march,” Scott noted. With many national civil rights groups working together to organize the massive demonstration, the event was effective in galvanizing public support for a federal civil rights bill, which ultimately was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson after Kennedy’s assassination.

Scott said that young people today typically cannot imagine what the era of segregation was like, because of the work that was done by King and other leaders to make change happen. “You can go anywhere to eat, you can sit where you want to on the bus or the train, go to the college you want to go to, you can do all of these things without even having to think about it,” Scott said. “But there was a day when you couldn’t do that. It’s hard for you to realize.”

She emphasized the importance of rejecting hatred and of voting. “We need to become passionate in a nonviolent way, and we need to encourage everyone 18 years or older to vote,” Scott said. “Do whatever you can in your community to help, to make a difference, and to keep Dr. King’s dream alive, the dream of equality and freedom.”

The program was one of two organized by the VGCC Minority Male Success Initiative in honor of the King holiday. The other was a trip for students to the International Civil Rights Center & Museum in Greensboro.

–VGCC–