This weekend, people all over Lake County will celebrate the life of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in different ways, remember his dreams and hopes, and hopefully carry them on. On Monday, a national holiday will be held in his honor.
Organizers of traditional events in Waukegan and North Chicago hope that people will learn how to keep King’s dream alive and turn it into a message for the 21st century.
The Rev. Angelo Kyle, a member of the Lake County Board and the president of the Lake County Forest Preserves District, said that the work Martin Luther King started in the 1950s is still the goal of society today. He is putting together one of the oldest celebrations of King’s life. “We are still working toward Dr. King’s dream,” Kyle said. “We are still trying to do what he did.”
Kyle is also the chairman of the North Shore Baptist Ministers’ Alliance. He is in charge of planning the group’s annual celebration of King’s life and legacy at the First Corinthian Missionary Baptist Church in North Chicago at 6 p.m. on Sunday. This event has been going on for more than 40 years.
Bishop Travis Grant is the head of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition in Chicago, which was started by the Rev. Jesse Jackson. He is this year’s keynote speaker. Jackson worked with King right away. Kyle said of Grant, “He has his heart, mind, and ear on the ground of the civil rights movement.”
Kyle said that ministers from different churches will talk about King’s legacy and that some of them will quote from the Bible. A choir made up of singers from about 15 Baptist churches in the area will play music.
Young people also have a part to play. Kyle said that young people from different churches will talk and read parts of King’s speeches. There will be awards for a number of elected officials. A few will talk.
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Kyle said, “They used some of what Dr. King did in their jobs as elected officials.” “He fought against unemployment, poverty, (unequal) housing, and violence. We’re still fighting that today.”
Monday at 10 a.m. is the 21st Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Dreamers’ Event in Waukegan Township. Marc Jones, the supervisor of the township, said that this year’s tribute to King’s legacy and naming of 10 drum majors for justice who represent his legacy will be done online.
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the event has been held virtually for the last two years. Jones said that the event is held virtually in part because the online format has been well received. In 2022, 178 screens were tuned into the show. It will let people take part in a casual way from home on a holiday. Jones said, “It will be fun, interesting, have a point, and hopefully make people think.”
Speakers will include Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, the Rev. James T. Meeks, pastor of Chicago’s Salem Baptist Church, and the Rev. Stephen Thurston II, also from Chicago’s Salem Baptist Church. Also speaking will be Illinois Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Rochford, College of Lake County President Lori Suddick, and U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park.
Jones said that a video will be shown in which a number of well-known people from the community will talk about how King is still important today by completing the phrase “Now is the time.” Jones said, “A number of well-known people in Lake County will talk about what the time is for.”
Since 1994, the King holiday is also a national day of service. This means that people in Waukegan and Highland Park will have chances to help their communities on Monday.
People will be able to make cards for nurses, teachers, veterans, first responders, and elected officials at the Waukegan Public Library on Monday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., according to the library’s website.
According to an email from the city, the 14th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service will be held at the Recreation Center of Highland Park on Monday at 10 a.m. There will be a dance performance, a keynote speech, and a number of service projects.
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