COLUMBUS, Ind. — Area residents have a variety of opportunities to remember the life and legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. today, from participating virtually in panel discussions to marching in his memory in downtown Columbus.
Events begin at 7:30 a.m. this morning on the Facebook page for the African American Pastors Alliance for a panel discussion featuring John Sims, athletic director at St. Peter’s Lutheran School, as main discussion leader, with a panel of friends Jerone Wood, a Columbus City Council member; Athens Church worship leader Chris Scott; and Kyle Hendricks, formerly with United of Bartholomew County and now with The Heritage Fund — the Community Foundation of Bartholomew County.
They will discuss the impact of King, the Baptist preacher and leader of the civil rights movement from the 1950s until his death from assassination in Memphis, Tennesee, in 1968. And they will discuss a variety of racial matters with just a few scripted questions. The Rev. Fred King, a local African American Pastor’s Alliance member, will chair the discussion.
The entire days events are a collaboration among the pastors alliance, the Columbus/Bartholomew County Area NAACP Branch and IUPUC.
Organizers have arranged a grab-and-go, brought-to-your-car lunch from local restaurant Homeboyz Fried Chicken and Fish from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Reinhold Hill, IUPUC vice chancellor and dean, will begin the virtual afternoon session at 1 p.m. via Zoom https://iu.zoom.us/j/83712295068 by presenting the IUPUC Excellence in Diversity Awards. Following the awards presentation, Kevin Jones, IUPUC associate professor of management, will give a keynote address.
Dr. Slade Crowder of Columbus Regional Health will then speak about the COVID-19 vaccine and the Black community, followed immediately by a panel discussion moderated by Johnnie Edwards, NAACP president, that will feature panel members Tyshaun Allen, Brian Lewis, and Dr. Rachel Woods. The afternoon session concludes with the presentation of the NAACP awards.
The public is invited to join in a silent, socially-distanced march beginning at 4 p.m. at the Bartholomew County Public Library in downtown Columbus. The march will end on the steps of Columbus City Hall, where Zacaria Scruggs will share King’s classic 1963 speech, “I Have a Dream.”
