Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy, memory honored at 39th annual breakfast in Columbus

On April 4, 1968, the world stood still as the news hit the airwaves.

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the Baptist minister and civil rights icon with a powerful, rallying voice who became one of the most well-known leaders who agitated for civil rights for African Americans, publicly denounced the Vietnam War and the country's militarism and materialism and called for more aid for the poor, had his life cut short by a sniper's bullet on his hotel balcony in Memphis, Tennessee. He was 39 years old.

King's death caused grief and mourning and for others, sparked rage and frustration. At the time of his death, public perception of King was mixed. A Gallup poll conducted in 1966 showed that Americans had a slightly more than positive view of King, at best.

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Now, 56 years later, on what would have been his 95th birthday, King's legacy is celebrated annually at the Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Breakfast celebration in Columbus. Every year, over 1,000 people from all ages and backgrounds coalesce and reflect on the history, impact, shortcomings and visions of a man whose name has become synonymous with justice, unity, peace and love.

This year's celebration, held Monday at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, marked the 39th annual breakfast, and just like previous years, featured praise dancing; speeches from politicians, business owners and community activists; and performances from Urban Strings Columbus and the Columbus Children's Choir; and poems and speeches from two honors students in Columbus. While the speeches and performances all varied, their message was clear: Continue to honor King's legacy, and commit to his ideals of justice, not just in theory but also in practice.

Some individuals took that literally, when, during U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown's speech commemorating King, three or four protesters tried to storm the speaker's dais and demand that Brown call for a ceasefire in Gaza, where over 20,000 Palestinians in the coastal enclave have been killed in Israeli airstrikes since Oct. 7. Police who were providing security at the event quickly removed the protesters, and the breakfast continued without a hitch.

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Breakfast speakers urge crowd to remember Martin Luther King Jr. for who he was, what he believed in

As those in attendance honored King, Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin urged the crowd to remember King's true ideals and commitments and not the "sanitized and safe version" of King that has been created and molded since his murder. Hardin pointed out that the crowd, just like King, shouldn't be afraid to "ruffle feathers" and should continue to stand up for the marginalized.

"Dr. King wasn't afraid to make people uncomfortable and speak truth to power," Hardin told The Dispatch later in a text message. Speaking in reference to the disturbance caused by the protesters, Hardin said that it was "completely fitting to use his (King's) birthday to bring attention to the justice issues of our time."

D'Marre J.L. Craddock, a junior at Morehouse College in Atlanta, where Dr. King himself was a student decades ago, similarly warned attendees to not become complacent with some of the issues the country faces. With an oratory flair and cadence not unlike King himself, Craddock addressed racism, the homelessness crisis in the United States, President Biden's requests for more aid for the wars in Ukraine and Israel and rampant gun violence in American communities.

"We are still living in a time where democracy is not living up to its fullest potential," Craddock told attendees.

"On this day, we will hear and see a lot of politicians who will get up and quote my dear Morehouse brother as a way of theory and obfuscation and quote him without any means of justifying how they actualize his philosophy," Craddock said. He encouraged attendees to "call out" those who quote King without acting on his ideals.

Breakfast keynote speaker, Donzaleigh Abernathy, remembers 'Uncle Martin and Aunt Coretta'

This year’s keynote speaker, Donzaleigh Abernathy, reflected on her time as a child when she knew King and his family. Her father, the Rev. Ralph David, co-founded the civil rights movement with King and became a type of extended family to the Kings. During her speech, Abernathy affectionately referred to King and his wife, Coretta Scott King, as “Uncle Martin and Aunt Coretta.”

While telling stories of her time with King's family, Abernathy scrolled through black and white photos of Martin's youth, time as a Morehouse student and his evolution into the civil rights icon whose face and ethos has become famous worldwide.

As the slideshow came to a close, Abernathy had one resounding message: Preserve democracy, and get out this year to vote.

@ShahidMeighan

smeighan@dispatch.com

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: MLK's legacy, ideals remembered at 39th annual breakfast in Columbus