By Tim Cherry
Staff Writer
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Equality, peace and non-violence will be the focus of Belvoir's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast celebration.
The garrison’s Equal Opportunity office is hosting the event Jan. 10 at 8 a.m., in the Fort Belvoir Community Center.
The event will feature free food and a speech from the honorable Rev. Walter Fauntroy, a personal friend of King.
The EO office encourages people of all backgrounds to attend the breakfast and honor the civil rights leader.
“It’s a day on and not a day off,” said Sgt. 1st Class Mark Roberts, EO advisor, who wants people to use the holiday to remember the sacrifices King and many others made to improve the quality of life for millions of people.
More than 40 years have passed since King died in 1968. He and other civil rights leaders’ work have paved the way for heightened equality amongst Americans.
King’s use of peaceful and non-violent methods to attain this equality set a precedent that Americans should continue to strive for, Roberts said.
Roberts believes King was a man who wanted equality in every aspect of life, from the way people are received in social settings to how their religious views are accepted.
“It’s a human race, not the white race not the black race but the human race where racial inequality is out the door,” Roberts said. “By having this [breakfast] and recognizing it just reinforces what he has always lived for and preached about."
Roberts said Fauntroy’s personal relationship should also provide a unique experience for attendees.
As a close friend to King, Fauntroy walked hand in hand with the civil rights leader during several peaceful protests in the early 1960s.
Roberts said he expects the reverend will share his personal stories, which will give participants rare insight into King’s life.
King’s “I have a Dream” speech along with other sermons and letters the civil rights leader wrote will be projected on screens throughout the event.
A virtual tour of a recently completed MLK memorial in Washington D.C. will also be displayed.
“It’s a beautiful sight,” said Roberts, who has taken his Family to see the memorial on several occasions. “It’s right here in our backyard, we should go view it as often as we can.”
Roberts hope attendees leave Tuesday’s breakfast with a better understanding of who King was and what he fought for and he encourages all people to attend and learn about and celebrate the civil rights leader.
“It should be a very festive event,” Roberts said.
