Dr. King remembered, honored in Norwich

Choir members celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during commemorative services in Norwich.

It was a weekend that included both “talking the talk” and “walking the walk” of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Bundled up against the winter chill of Jan. 16, Terri DeBarros of Norwich stepped briskly down Franklin Street with about 30 other marchers, singing “We Shall Overcome." She said she marched because it was important to remind people “that Rev. Martin Luther King Day is not just another day.”

“A lot of the things he fought for, we still don’t have,” added fellow marcher Barbara Billups, also of Norwich.

The Jan. 16 procession in King’s memory, culminating in a prayer and gospel music service and fellowship meal, was one of several commemorative activities marking King’s birthday in Norwich. The events, organized by the Norwich branch of the NAACP, also included the annual memorial luncheon Jan. 13 at Norwich Free Academy.

The ceremonies were designed both to call to mind King’s dream of racial equality for all Americans, and also to recognize the victories of civil rights as well as the ongoing struggles against discrimination. Rev. Tarishia Martin of Shiloh Baptist Church in New London recalled Dr. King’s August 1963 March on Washington, D.C., where he delivered his immortal “I Have a Dream” speech. “He dared to fight for freedom and democracy in the midst of the nightmare of injustice and police brutality,” she said.

Speaking to those in the crowd who lived through those days, she said, “It’s because of you…that my generation and generations to come walk in the manifestation of [King’s] dream. I can’t fathom the depths of what Dr. Martin Luther King and you experienced.”
She recited a litany of thanks to other giants of the civil rights movement: Emmett Till, Medgar Evers, Shirley Chisolm and Harriet Tubman among them.

Leroy Gardner, also of Shiloh, who described himself as a community activist, said he was glad to see a nearly full house at Evans Memorial AME Zion Church in Norwich, where the march ended with a boisterous prayer service, liberally mingled with gospel music.
“We’ve all come together in honor of this wonderful man…to just give this man the respect he earned through his sacrifices,” Gardner said. “He gave us a model of what to do, working under one faith heart.”

Rev. Greg Perry of the Greenville United Congregational Church invited members of the congregation to stand and declare their home church, to emphasize the gathering’s “diversity of spirituality.” Nearly a dozen different local houses of worship were represented, from Baptist to Unitarian to Jewish.

While past civil rights victories were celebrated, lingering injustices were not ignored. Rev. Martin’s son, Robert Martin, spoke to today’s civil rights agenda at the MLK memorial luncheon at NFA, where he’s a senior. Citing the high numbers of incarcerated men of color, Robert Martin said that current laws amount to a new disenfranchisement of African-Americans. “When an individual is once labeled a felon, they are subjected to discrimination, denied the right to vote or serve on a jury,” he said. In addition, they face discrimination in employment, housing and educational opportunities. “Ex-felons are pushed into… second-class status,” he said.

“Some of my peers seem to have lost our dreams,” he said. For many, Dr. King’s dream has turned into a nightmare. As African-Americans climb the ladder to success, “it is our responsibility as a people to always look behind us and help those who are behind us,” he said. “We must help out our house before we step out in battle.”

His mother, Rev. Martin, exhorted her listeners to actively use their rights, especially the right to vote. “You have the right to vote or not to vote,” she said. “It is your right, but let me tell you, it was purchased at a high price.”

Contact Janice Steinhagen with story ideas at jsteinhagen@remindernet.com.