For the Martin Luther King Peace and Justice Committee this year’s event took on special meaning given its coincidence with the presidential inauguration. Our committee, community-minded volunteers who spend much of the year organizing the annual MLK Day events, wanted to provide an outlet for like-minded people in Prescott to march and raise their voices in celebration of the life of the true American hero who said, “our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” As a result, our annual MLK Day March and Celebration attracted record crowds of over 300 marchers and over 400 celebrants.
People gathered for the march at the Prescott College Welcome Center, where they were treated to a smudging ceremony to guide and protect the marchers performed by Manuel Lucero, executive director of the Museum of Indigenous People.
As a warmup the Bucket Brigade, led by Gus Andrews, offered a Brazilian-style drum performance using buckets. Then Lucero, with eagle staff and a peace pipe, led the marchers down Grove Avenue to Gurley Street, and the procession headed to the courthouse plaza. It circled the courthouse, at one point making a continuous ring around the plaza, before heading back down Gurley to Prescott United Methodist Church. There the marchers lined up for coffee, hot chocolate, donuts and bagels while enjoying a second performance by the Bucket Brigade.
Master of Ceremonies Pastor Kendra Hobson of St. Luke Ebony Christian Church welcomed the crowd to the celebration, which began with a standing-room-only crowd lining the walls of the church sanctuary. After Reverend Dan Hulbert of PUMC offered an opening prayer prior, Prescott Councilman Brandon Montoya read the City’s MLK Day Proclamation.
The proclamation is typically read by the Mayor, but this year Mayor Goode refused to sign the proclamation and publicly denounced it prior to the January 14 City Council meeting. More on that below.
Next committee member Sophia Brown announced the winners of our Teen Keynote Speaker contest, and Iona Tran, Faith Pomier and Isabelle Brown were called to the stage to receive their respective third, second, and first-place awards. Isabelle then wowed the crowd with a rhyming Teen Keynote address, speaking eloquently on the theme ‘Strength in Diversity,’ to a standing ovation.
The musical group Womansong then engaged the audience in a singalong canon by Abbie Betinis called “Love Is Love Is Love Is Love,” followed by a rousing spoken-word piece delivered by Jeff Daverman encouraging us to follow the example of the Good Samaritan and help those who need lifting up. Concert pianist Benita Rose then gave stirring interpretation of “Troubled Water” by Margaret Bonds, following up with “Mother and Child” by William Grant Still with her husband and musical partner, saxophonist Tony Gibbs.
After the Prescott Interfaith Choir performed “Draw the Circle Wide” by Gordon Light and Mark A. Miller, Isabelle Brown returned to the stage with Asher Lynch to offer an update on The Launch Pad’s Better Together program, which features community dinners where participants engage in guided conversations about difficult topics.
Keynote Speaker Truth B Told then took the stage to provide a no-holds-barred address aimed at our current government’s blatant racism and white-supremacist leanings. Chris specifically addressed the mayor's refusal to endorse the City proclamation, written by our committee, due to our replacement of the word ‘equality’ with ‘equity,’ among other things. Chris also addressed the mayor’s citation of an anti-DEI law group to justify his actions. Chris told the audience how white supremacy is a “first-person account told as a third-person narrative,” pushing ‘whiteness’ as a standard for all people to achieve. He further urged the audience to “not allow intolerance to find comfort in their presence” and be willing to take up the fight for equal justice.
After an extended standing ovation for Truth B Told, Meg Bohrman took the stage for a passionate rendering of her composition “Give It All Away.” As MLK Committee coordinator, I concluded the event by asking the audience to support the event sponsors and take action by joining the MLK Committee or supporting us in various ways. The audience then split into adjacent rooms for an hour-long breakout session, where Jeff Daverman and Truth B Told participated in discussions of their presentations.
The MLK Committee has a lot of work to do this year to push back on the racism and discrimination that is being normalized in our society. The mayor’s refusal to sign the proclamation, calling it a “detestable, incremental attempt to hijack Dr. King's dream of true equality,” illustrated what our community is up against. Please join us in keeping Dr. King’s legacy alive!
