A proclamation, signed by Mayor Andy Ryder on Tuesday, January 2, encouraged the community members to reflect on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision to continue advancing justice and equality.
The Lacey City Council signed the proclamation recognizing Monday, January 15 as Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Civil rights advocate Dr. Thelma Jackson accepted the proclamation on behalf of the community and thanked the council for recognizing the important legacy of Dr. King. She invited the council members and the public to attend New Life Baptist Church's annual celebration of Dr. King's life and legacy on the holiday.
"We want to bring the attention back to the ideals and values Dr. King stood for… We, as a society, are in great jeopardy of having our democracy taken from us. We again find ourselves fighting for the right to vote, fighting for [reaffirmation] of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution," Dr. Dr. Jackson said. "These things have become so eroded. These were the things that Dr. King lived and died for."
This year's MLK Day celebration, Dr. Jackson said they wanted to open up dialogues and have courageous conversations about the fact that "there is still inequality, racial oppression, and all of the issues that Dr. King had become a hero for by winning the Nobel Peace Prize."
"Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights leader, devoted his life to the non-violent advancement of civil rights and public services, and his dream is no less inspirational and important today than when he first expressed it 60 years ago," stated the proclamation.
"Even with the progress achieved during the Civil Rights movement and subsequent decades, inequities, injustices, racism, and other forms of discrimination and oppression are still prevalent in our society today," it added.
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Snevets
Thank you for sharing.
Tuesday, January 9 Report this