Academy Award winner Kevin Willmott will speak at 'I Have a Dream' event in Topeka
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Remembrance and celebration will be key parts of the event Aug. 28 in Topeka to mark the 60th anniversary of a monumental day in the struggle for civil rights, says Academy Award winner Kevin Willmott.
But the Topeka event will also provide a reminder that "the struggle continues" and give participants a chance to refocus on what still needs to be done, Willmott told The Capital-Journal on Wednesday.
Willmott will be the keynote speaker for that celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Aug. 28, 1963, March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, during which the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
When and where will the event be?
The event will be from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Aug. 28 at New Mount Zion Baptist Church, 2801 S.E. Indiana Ave., said a news release put out by the committee that's arranging it.
The event has been organized to recognize and celebrate "those on whose shoulders the persistent and powerful pursuit of racial equity was revealed to the world 60 years ago while continuing to shine a bright light on that pursuit in 2023 and beyond," that release said.
It encouraged those seeking more information to contact committee member Michael Bell at theanticj@yahoo.com.
What was the March on Washington?
An estimated 250,000 people attended the March on Washington, which was held to advocate for the economic and civil rights of African-American people, said the news release from the committee that's putting together the Topeka event.
The march is credited with helping to pass the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964, the news release said.
It told how of King, while humbly yet powerfully standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial at the west end of the National Mall, delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech, in which he called for an end to racism.
King, who was born in 1929, by that time had already become one of the most prominent leaders in the Civil Rights Movement while advocating nonviolence and civil disobedience. He was fatally shot by an assassin in 1968.
Who is Kevin Willmott?
Willmott, a Junction City native, teamed up with Spike Lee, David Rabinowitz and Charlie Wachtel to win an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for their work on Lee's 2018 film, "BlacKkKlansman."
Willmott and Lee have also worked together to write the scripts for the films "Da Five Bloods" and "Chi-Raq."
Wilmott is a professor of film at the University of Kansas.
He has directed the films "Ninth Street," "Bunker Hill," "Jayhawkers," "The 24th," "The Only Good Indian," "Destination: Planet Negro" and "CSA: Confederate States of America."
Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Oscar winner Kevin Willmott to speak at Topeka 'I Have a Dream' event
