The City Scene
Remembering Martin Luther King Jr.
By Lindsay Sauvageau

On the evening of April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tenn., the world lost a great leader. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. died, not just a civil rights leader, but a world leader whose hopes, dreams and ambitions are still felt and honored today.

While businesses, churches and organizations will be remembering the life and honoring the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. it is important that we at home not forget, as he never forgot the beauty and inspiration we carry in us all.

According to a biography of this civil rights leader presented by the Nobel Prize organization, Martin Luther King, Jr., (January 15, 1929-April 4, 1968) was born Michael Luther King, Jr., but later had his name changed to Martin. King attended segregated public schools in Georgia, and graduated from high school at fifteen. He received a B. A. in 1948 from Morehouse College in Atlanta, where both his father and grandfather also went to school. He studied theology for three years at the Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania where he was elected president of a predominantly white senior class and was eventually awarded a B.D. in 1951.

Later, King completed his doctorate degree from Boston University during which time he met and married Coretta Scott. The couple had two sons and two daughters together.

A member of the executive committee of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the leading organization of its kind in the nation, in the mid-1950s he lead the first great Negro nonviolent demonstration in the United States - the Montgomery Bus Boycott - which lasted 382 days. Not long after, the Supreme Court declared the laws requiring segregation on buses as unconstitutional.

These, however, were hard times for King. He was arrested, his home was bombed and he was subjected to physical abuse. In 1957, he was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization formed to provide new leadership for the civil rights movement and between 1957 and 1968. King traveled over six million miles and spoke over 2,500 times, appearing wherever there was injustice, protest, and action. During this time King also wrote five books, led a massive protest in Birmingham, Ala., planned drives in Alabama for the registration of Negroes as voters and directed the peaceful march on Washington, D.C., of 250,000 people to whom he delivered his address, "I Have a Dream." At 35, Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest man to receive the Nobel Peace Prize.

On Sunday, Jan. 20, the MLK Coalition of Leominster, Fitchburg, and Gardner will be holding its Ninth Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration at the Unitarian Universalist First Church of Leominster, 15 West St. A program to remember and reflect on the life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., with special recognition of the 40th anniversary of his death, the event will be held from 1 to 3 p.m.

The program will include visual and performing arts, music, and guest speaker Dr. Sibyl V. Brownlee, vice-president of Student Affairs at Worcester State College.

Following the program, a multicultural buffet will be served in the lower church hall from 3 to 4 p.m. Books and t-shirts will be available for sale through the event. The program is free, however a $5 per person donation is requested for the buffet.

Whether you go to events like this or spend the day at home, remember to make the day about reflection and keep King's memory - his hope - alive.