The 13th annual Springfield Martin Luther King Day March and Celebration event at Springfield Middle School brought people of all ages, colors and backgrounds together to celebrate the life and legacy of the civil rights activist, marking the 25th anniversary of the federal holiday.
“It’s important to continue his legacy for community and kindness,” Springfield Police Chief Jerry Smith said.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day honors the civil rights leader who fought for equality and integration of African Americans in a predominantly white society. On this day, people from all walks of life come together and try to bridge social barriers and break down stereotypes. The Springfield event starts with a one-mile march from the Springfield Justice Center to the Springfield Middle School, culminating with a celebration of diversity and life.
“You live this every day and have the opportunity to make the world a better place,” superintendent of Willamalane Parks and Recreation Bob Keefer said to the assembly gathered in the middle school’s gymnasium.
The festivities inside Springfield Middle School were organized, in large, by students from various Springfield schools and included readings and musical performances by some of these students.
Springfield High School student Alisen Hinton wrote an essay in which she described how racism begins at a young age and that “little kids are using racial slurs before they know what it means, before they understand the meaning behind it.”
She studied the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. and found the message of the innocence of children and the hope for the future an important one to recreate when she started writing her essay.
Community and kindness were things the University’s Kappa Sigma fraternity kept in mind while volunteering at the event. University junior Justin Biza said it was the first time the fraternity was present at this event, but that it hopes to be a part of it again in the future.
“It’s the MLK Day of Service,” University freshman Mark Mason said. “It’s a celebration.”
The Martin Luther King Day of Service was initiated by Congress in 1994.
Members of Kappa Sigma, along with other volunteers who signed up for the University’s Day of Service program, handed out cookies and fruit juice to the people who participated in the Springfield march.
Betsy Steffensen has been participating in the Springfield march since it started in 1998 and has been involved in equal rights efforts longer.
“I was raised in St. Louis, and the schools were not integrated back then,” Steffensen said. She made a black friend in her local Girl Scout troop and has been involved in raising awareness for integration and equality ever since.
The message of equality still needs to be spread, but the message is not just related to race, Thurston High School student Heidi Brown wrote in her essay.
Brown talked about being a victim of abuse and used the famous Martin Luther King, Jr. quote, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter” to illustrate how abuse, whether it be verbal, physical, sexual or emotional, is an important issue that needs to be addressed.
[email protected]
Springfield MLK march celebrates diversity and life
Daily Emerald
January 16, 2011
Rachelle Hacmac
0
More to Discover