TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) -- Sunday evening, the pews in Tallahassee's Bethel A.M.E. Church were full of locals on this special occasion. Everyone is here to celebrate the birthday of Doctor Martin Luther King Junior, which is on January 15th.
The Inter-Civic Council of Southern Christian Leadership Council of Tallahassee has been hosting this event for 48 years. People in attendance tell me how important it is for the community to come together. Bill Proctor, Leon County Board of County Commissioners says, "To lift up this man on his birthday, a national holiday, it reverberates with a lot of meaning to those persons who will come and again reaffirm our commitment to unity."
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the civil rights leader's assassination in Memphis, Tennessee. The night before he was shot in 1968, Doctor King delivered his final speech supporting sanitation workers on strike to protest poor pay and bad working conditions.
Proctor adds, we are pausing to appreciate the men and women who are not often acknowledged, like the garbage workers of Memphis. Doctor Larry Robinson, President of FAMU, is the keynote speaker. He tells us it's a special event for him because he is a native to Memphis. He tells us, "It's also important for us to come together and realize what we need to continue to work on as a community to realize his dream, for all citizens in this community and around this country."
Doctor Robinson adds, every student deserves an opportunity to accel in the school system, regardless of their background or home situation. Sunday's event at Bethel A.M.E. Church is one way the community is fulfilling doctor King's dream.
