HomeMy WebLinkAboutMLK MarchSpirit undaunted by
rain, time
nners or the ueita sigma Theta Sorority Inc. head up the 10th
ual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Freedom March down Martin
Atlanta mayor
urges continued
pursuit of equality
By ERRIN H:AINES
Associated Press
ATLANTA -With the widow of Mar-
n Luther King Jr. absent for the first
me in nearly four decades, preachers
id politicians urged people Monday to
~ntinue the slain leader's lifelong pur-
tit of civil rights and nonviolence.
On the holiday marking King's birth,
Mme speakers used the pulpit of
tlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church to
~iticize the Iraq war, saying money
ping used by the military overseas
Auld be better spent domestically on
•ojects such as education, especially
r blacks.
Loretta Scott King, recovering from a
roke and heart attack that partially
~ralyzed her, stayed home and
Eagle photos/Butch Ireland
Luther King Jr. Street on Monday. Senior D.J. Jones (below) plays
the baritone while marching with the Hearne High School band.
~~, ~ ,,~
. , .. _ ~ ~ '
It was the first time in 38 years she has
missed the service at the church where
King preached from 1960 until his death
in 1968. She received a standing ovation
Saturday night when she appeared on
stage with her children at an awards
dinner, her first public appearance
..
=r=
This year is the 20th anniversary of
the federal holiday, first held Jan. 20,
1986. Sunday would have been the
assassinated civil rights leader's 77th
birthday.
Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said.;
March, sponsored by the Bra-
zos Valley Area Alumnae
Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta
Sorority Inc. started at Sadie
Thomas Park and followed
Martin Luther King Jr. Street
to Kemp Elementary School:
Several politicians joined
the group, for the three-mile
hike that ended at Kemp Ele-
mentary School, where Oswell
Person, interim president of
Paul Quinn College in Dallas,
addressed the crowd.
The parade also served as a
history lesson for the younger
generation, one observer said.
Bryan resident Lektha Wil-
son said she sat down the night
before with her 8-year-old
daughter, Paighton Hopson, to
tell her why it was important
to celebrate King's life.
"We try to come out here
ever year. As long as I can
remember, I used to come out
here with my mother, and we
do the same thing now," said
Wilson, 31, as she watched the
marchers stroll by from the
corner of Martin Luther King
Jr. and Pierce streets. "I told
. my daughter that [King] was
because he was a civil rigl
leader who saw that blac
weren't being treated fair
He knew that wasn't right."
Master Sgt. Rick James s~
the lessons King taught a
are important to his RO'
cadets from Bryan Hi
School.
The students helped gui
the Freedom March parti
pants down the parade rou
and James said having ]
cadets volunteer meant me
than just community servic
"We're here to show we si
port his message," James sa
"He worked toward un
between all people no mat
what race, creed or, color y
are."
And while Seymore said
was encouraged to see a lay
and diverse crowd despite 1
wet conditions, she hopes i
Bryan-College Station comp
nity practices King's teas
ings daily.
"[King's] work has set ~
foundation to make the wo
better for all of us," she sa
"This kind of day lifts my sI
its and makes the body f
good. I wasn't going to m
this even it was raining
snowing."
^ Greg Okuhara's a-mail address
is greg.okuhara@theeagle.com.