Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan hosts annual luncheon

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - People gathered Monday to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr Day. It’s an event that brings together the community through music, storytelling, and fellowship.

Over 1,500 guests piled into the Lansing Center to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“This is about celebration, right?” One speaker said at the event.

“This is really just a day to come together to honor Dr. King, his legacy, and to promote civil rights,” Tony Baltimore, MLK Commission of Mid-Michigan said.

Monday marked the 40th year of the Dr. King ‘Day of Celebration Luncheon’ put on by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan. The commission says this luncheon is the nation’s largest and longest-running annual day of celebration.

“We showcase our children. We have an essay contest and so we will be reading some of those essays with our essay winners and then just again to fellowship and have lunch with one another,” Baltimore said.

This year’s celebration featured performances and speeches from civil rights leaders. Organizers say while the luncheon gives them an opportunity to highlight their community, they say it also gives young people a chance to learn more about Dr. King.

“Back in the past white people didn’t like black people. And then now until this day black people like white people,” Kamrrin Marshall said.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan says they’re glad to host another year celebrating Dr. King’s legacy.

“We’ve seen a lot of progress over the last 60-plus years, but we still have a lot more to go,” Baltimore said. “I think we can still find hope and the dream that Dr. King had, and we can celebrate today and every day moving forward.”

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