- As we start tonight's program, we're going to start with the lift every voice and singing. We invite
- you to certainly stand and sing along with us. Lift every voice and sing. Lift every voice and sing,
- till earth and heaven
- Sing with the heart.
- Can you hear me? Yes. Okay. Good evening, everyone. How are you doing out there? Good to see you guys
- look beautiful out there. Well, those are some amazing voices. Can we give it up for them again, please?
- They sound so good. They sound the way that we think we sound when we sing out loud in the car or in
- the shop. We don't sound like that at all. But thankfully, we'll be hearing from them again since they're
- part of the African American Choral Ensemble.
- who will be gracing us with more beautiful performances tonight, directed by the remarkable Dr.
- Raymond Weiss. So please give them another round of applause. So my name is Brittany Talisa King. I'm
- a member of the MLK Birthday Celebration Commission Board, and I am thrilled to be your emcee for tonight.
- So on behalf of the hosts, city of Bloomington, we're grateful you're all here. Give yourselves a round
- of applause.
- There's gonna be a lot of round of applause tonight, just so you guys know, so your hands will stay
- warm and cozy. But on a serious note, tonight we've gathered for a very special occasion to commemorate
- a movement that's changed all of our lives. A movement that fought for the rights of black Americans
- spearheaded by the one and only Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And let's be clear, United States will look
- very different right now if it wasn't for the tireless fight of the revolutionaries and the activists
- of the civil rights movement.
- However, as you can see by tonight's event title, Soul, Spirit, and Sacrifice, honoring the legacy of
- Coretta Scott King and the women who faced America to save us and us being an acronym for United States.
- We wanted to focus this year's program on uplifting the unsung heroes of this era, the black women.
- These women were the wives, the sisters, the organizers, the teachers, the activists, the church mothers,
- the friends, the daughters, the aunties,
- and the women who gave their lives to challenge the injustices to ensure that we lived in a more free
- country than they did. Tonight's event will also honor the very woman who stood right next to Dr.
- King Jr., who he described as resilient and essential to his life's work, the bold and courageous Coretta
- Scott King. If you don't know already, Coretta was a scholar and a writer in her own right.
- In 1965, she published an essay titled The Negro Woman's Guide to a New Way of Life, an essay that she
- personally mailed to her good friend Rosa Parks before it was received by the world. I just wanted to
- add that fun fact in there. I love that she wanted her sister friend to get the scoop before anyone
- else did. But in the essay, she expressed that it's the women that's been the backbone and the soul
- of the civil rights movement, and it's the women who made it possible for the movement to be a massive one.
- And just so everyone knows, because I don't think everyone knows this fact, it's because of Coretta's
- leadership that we now have a holiday to honor and commemorate Dr. King's legacy, a task that took her
- over 20 years of her life, over two decades to accomplish. So we're all able to gather in this historic
- theater together with our friends and family because of Coretta Scott King.
- If you arrived here before the event, you may have saw a presentation of 20 historic women who were
- impacted by the civil rights movement, or who impacted the civil rights movement. Women like Daisy Bates,
- the Arkansas NAACP president, who also helped mentor the Little Rock Nine, who famously integrated into
- a black and white high school. Or Merrill Joe Reagan, one of the Freedom Ride revolutionaries who helped
- change the landscape of America.
- These women's actions open the door for women today, like Ayanna Presley or Stacey Abrams or Jasmine
- Crockett, to continue to face America and challenge it to simply be better and do better. These are
- just some of the historic women that will be recognized tonight, along with celebrating Bloomington's
- women of the movement, who are making, as the late great Congressman John Lewis would say, who is also
- one of my heroes, good trouble for all of us here locally, and we thank you for it.
- So we'll recognize these ladies later this evening. But for right now, please sit back and relax. We
- have a packed experience for you tonight. You're going to hear more selections from the amazing
- IU African-American Choral Ensemble, encouraging words from beloved community leaders. The mayor will
- present this year's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Award. And of course, we will witness an inspiring
- keynote from the brilliant Dr. Tracy Parker. Last and tried and true fashion,
- In the spirit of working smarter, not harder, did you guys hear that there's an IU game happening today?
- I heard something about it, I don't know. Go Hoosiers. So there's actually gonna be that streaming after
- this event. The Buskirk Chumbly has arranged it so that we don't have to go anywhere, we can not lose
- our parking spots, get some popcorn, and we're gonna watch them win. So look at God working in our behalf.
- Thank you, Lord.
- He always has us, yes. So we're going to keep the show moving, and welcome back to the stage, the IU
- African American Choral Ensemble, led by Dr. Raymond Wise. I'm Dr. Raymond Wise. This is the African
- American Choral Ensemble. We're certainly glad to be with you for the MLK celebration this year. And
- as we think about the celebration, one of the key points of that celebration was hope.
- There was always a sense that things could always get better. And that is still what we have to hang
- on to today. We're going to sing a song that just, ooh, child, things are going to get easier. Things
- are going to get brighter. And we want to encourage, if you know the song that was originally recorded
- by the five stair steps, that if you know it, sing along with us, clap along with us, tap along with
- us. But that is the hope that we have, that one day, in spite of all the chaos and craziness that goes
- on in our world, that things will get better. Ooh, child, things are going to get better. Enjoy.
- Sang. Let's just be clear. There's a difference between singing and singing. In the black American community,
- there's a colloquialism we like to use called sang. And if we use that, that's translation for you understood
- the assignment and you understood your key, which is not easy to do. So they were amazing. I forgot
- I was in church. Goodness. So I must mention that this ensemble will be celebrating its 50th anniversary
- at IU. Yes.
- So let's please be sure to support their events, including their special 50th anniversary concert on
- February 21st. And then you can learn more about this ensemble along with other African American Institute
- ensembles, the African American Dance Company, and the IU Soul Review by visiting their website and
- social media pages. And you can see it all on the screen. So take a photo, save in your calendar. Let's
- support them.
- So right now, we are transitioning into the heart of why we're here. In honor of this year's theme,
- the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration Commission has chosen to uplift local women whose
- leadership and advocacy have helped shape Bloomington. The women on the screen, as you can see here,
- and the women in this room, represent a small reflection of a larger movement in the city. These women
- have dedicated years
- even decades of their lives to ensure that people like us in Bloomington are thriving, are safe, and
- have the opportunity to succeed in all aspects of their lives. They do it all from educating the next
- generations to serving in public office to supporting our unhoused neighbors, which needs major support
- right now, mentoring the youth, combating food insecurity, and strengthening families and communities
- every single day.
- Coretta Scott King once stated that the greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the
- compassionate actions of its members. So by Coretta's own words and by that measurement, Bloomington
- is great in part because of the actions of these local women. The named and the unnamed, the more visible
- ones are the ones more behind the scenes. No matter the capacity of their work, it's all important and
- they're changing the city.
- So if you're one of these women, of the local women of the movement, invited here this evening to be
- recognized, can you please stand at this time if you can?
- Angela Davis once said that you have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world.
- And these local women strive forward with a defiant belief like Angela that day by day needles toward
- progress will move even if they're setback after setback after setback in their lives. Nevertheless,
- they push forward. Tonight we give these women their flowers. We acknowledge you, we uplift you, and
- we have your back.
- We want you to know that we thank you for everything that you do for Bloomington, making it a stronger
- and more just community. Can we give them another round of applause? Thank you. Thank you, everyone.
- Your round of applause just keep getting better and better. You guys are on it. Before we continue,
- we must thank our underwriters, sponsors, contributors,
- supporters who make this event possible because it takes a village as we all know. So thank you to our
- supporters and contributors, Bloomington Monastery School, the IU Credit Union, the Media School of
- Indiana University, Monroe County Branch NAACP, Old National Bank, and the United Way of South Central
- Indiana. And then for our major underwriters, Charlie and Jennifer Nelms, and the City of Bloomington.
- You all know what to do. Can we give them a round of applause? Also, we would like to extend a special
- thank you to the staff of the Busker Trimbley
- Chumbly Theater, and the director Steve Forsoff, and the many years of collaboration with the community
- and the Family Resources Department to produce this beloved MLK event every single year. And every single
- year, personally for me, every time I've come to this event, the staff and everyone involved has been
- so kind. So can we give it up for them too? And finally,
- We would be remiss if we didn't acknowledge all the elected officials who are with us tonight.
- And as we know, Dr. King challenged many politicians throughout his career to create groundbreaking
- legislation that supported the civil rights and the human rights of all Americans. We are grateful to
- our elected officials who fight to actualize Dr. King's vision in our community. So if there's any elected
- officials here, past or present, can you please stand to be recognized at this time?
- Thank you. Now, let's welcome back to the stage Dr. Raymond Wise and the Sangin African-American Choral
- Ensemble. Sangin, yes. My amen chord over here. Thank you. I will give you an offering. Following their
- performance, we'll be joined by the Mayor Kerry Thompson, who will be presenting this year's Dr. Martin
- Luther King Jr. Legacy Award of 2026. Can we welcome back the ensemble on stage?
- As the choir is coming, we're going to sing two selections for you. The first one is actually a spiritual,
- concert spiritual, entitled Somebody's Knocking at Your Door. Many of you know anything about the African
- American spirituals. You know that they were songs of faith, they were songs of hope, but they were
- also songs of communication. They were songs that allowed enslaved African Americans to send messages
- to encourage them to know that they could run away to freedom and they could have a better life. Well,
- this song just says, listen, because somebody's knocking at your door.
- that was a sign for them to listen for the knock. And the knock was a sign that it was time to move.
- It was time to change. But as we think of our world today, there's some knocking going on. But are we
- listening? It's time for us to change. It's time for us to move. So as we share this spiritual, we hope
- that you're encouraged to listen for the knock of the world that's calling us to service and to a better
- place for humanity. Somebody's knocking at your door. Enjoy.
- Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen Somebody's knocking at your door, listen
- Somebody's knocking at your door, listen, listen, listen, Lawson Why don't you answer? Somebody's knocking
- at your door, listen Sounds like Jesus Somebody's knocking at your door, listen Sounds like Jesus Somebody's
- knocking at your door, listen, listen, listen, Lawson
- Somebody's knocking at your door, listen. Somebody's knocking at your door, listen. Why don't you answer?
- Somebody's knocking at your door, listen.
- Somebody's knocking at your door. Somebody's knocking at your door. Somebody's knocking at your door.
- Somebody's knocking at your door.
- Before we sing our next election, I'd like to let you know that this year we're excited
- that the African-American Choral Ensemble is celebrating its 50-year anniversary. And in celebration,
- acknowledgement of that anniversary, we are going to have a wonderful celebration. Coming up on Saturday,
- February the 21st, we're going to be having a concert that will feature over 100 ACE alumni coming back
- to Bloomington to sing at the MAC. We're going to do a concert in the MAC auditorium
- So put that on your calendar. It's going to be a wonderful event. And our directors, our living directors,
- are going to be coming back. They're going to be with us. It's going to be a great, great celebration.
- So we invite you to be a part of that celebration as well. The next song that we're going to sing is
- actually written by our musician, Bobby Davis Jr. And we're going to have Brother Bobby Davis and Darren
- Collins, who are serving as musicians with us this evening. And this song is entitled, Lead with Love.
- And when you begin to look at our interactions in the world, we have a choice with what we lead with.
- Sometimes I talk about playing cards as you have a deck. Which card are you going to play? And sometimes
- we play cards that are not always the cards that bring unity and bring hope. But we encourage you to
- lead with love. I think Dr. King said that hate will not cast out hate. Only love will cast out hate.
- Darkness will not cast out darkness, only light will cast out darkness. So as we celebrate this day,
- we want to encourage you that as you interact with people in your sphere and in your circle, think about
- leading with love. It's a choice. We can choose to lead with love or we can lead with hate. But if we
- lead with love, we might just make a difference. So we encourage you to leave this place and be encouraged
- to lead with love. Enjoy.
- ensemble, one more round of applause. Aren't they awesome? Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Wise for your leadership
- and for the tremendous asset that you bring here to Bloomington. It is my great honor to be with you
- tonight as we honor the lives and the legacies of Dr. King and his wife, Coretta Scott King.
- and the countless other civil rights leaders. Here in our community, tonight, we celebrate this cherished
- Bloomington tradition. We do this each year to recognize the many individuals across our city who exemplify
- Dr. King's values and teachings, the King family and the entire civil rights movement.
- because they remind us that progress is not inevitable. It is achieved through service, sacrifice, and
- the courage to stand up for what is right in the face of justice. Their vision of a world where equality,
- dignity, and opportunity exist for all people challenges us still.
- especially in times like today, when division and prejudice persist. Today, we reflect not only on how
- far we have come, but on the work that still remains. We recommit ourselves to building communities
- rooted in fairness, mutual respect, and understanding. And we turn our words into action by serving
- our neighbors,
- uplifting the marginalized and choosing love over hate. These are the beliefs that propelled the conversation
- around racial equality into our shared social consciousness in the 1960s. And they are what will lead
- our community into 2026 and beyond as we work together toward a Bloomington that works for all people.
- It's important that I know that my expectation in our city is that our city works for all people in
- ways that many other places are not working for all people in the United States today. This is a moment
- where we can and we must choose to be different.
- And I want to take a moment to celebrate a milestone that we have achieved in our community because
- we have legislators now here in the city and county who are ready to write that groundbreaking legislation.
- And they are led for the first time by black presidents of both the city and county council together
- Isak Asari and Jennifer Crossley, I know you're both here. I've at least heard Isak. Can we give them
- a hand and thank them for leading Bloomington? There they are. We have great trust in you and the leadership
- that you will continue
- provide for our community. I am now thrilled to present the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Award
- to a Bloomington resident who lives these values every single day. She has contributed to our community's
- well-being in countless ways through research, documentation, volunteer coordination, and organizational
- leadership.
- As a member of the Monroe County chapter of the NAACP, she led an effort to document decades of racial
- disparities in the Monroe County criminal justice system and supported students involved in developing
- an anti-racism policy for MCCSC.
- With the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington's Racial Justice Task Force, she organized Indiana
- Black History Tours to the West Baden First Baptist Church and Crispus Atticus High School in Indianapolis.
- She is also a regular volunteer at the Neal Marshall Black Culture Center, where she helped welcome
- hundreds of people from across the country to Indiana University's campus. Ruth Ite.
- This award is yours. Congratulations.
- Thank you, community. Thank you, Mayor. Thank you to the Commission for this award. Knowing some of
- the past recipients and their lifelong work in the areas of race relations, justice, and human rights,
- it is an especially great honor to be here today. So many in our community give tirelessly to advance
- racial equity and justice and to foster belonging.
- Over the past few years, I have supported some of their efforts with varying degrees of energy, competence,
- and cluelessness. The more I learn, the more I realize the scope of what I don't know and have been
- conditioned not to see in the past and in the present. And yet, I'm receiving this award.
- I will share some of my journey and I hope it inspires others to support the individuals and organizations
- who disproportionately carry out the work for racial equity and justice, work that benefits us all.
- Thanks to Guy Lofman who nominated me for this award and even more so for his introduction to the Monroe
- County NAACP, my initial link there.
- NAACP events, such as the one next Sunday with Dr. Charlie Noms, offer powerful opportunities for community
- learning and conversation. Through the NAACP, I heard from local black students about the racial
- discrimination and bullying they were experiencing and about their efforts to develop an anti-racism policy.
- This was my introduction not only to these incredible student leader activists, but also to many caring
- educators who do so much to support all students. Their work is not getting easier. My involvement with
- the NAACP connected me to Dr. Gloria Howell, Director of the Neal Marshall Black Culture Center at IU,
- among many other hats.
- I have experienced firsthand how Dr. Glow is a true ambassador, bridging town and gown and fostering
- community and belonging. What an honor and a joy it has been to help at some of the culture center events
- alongside the dedicated and caring staff and remarkable students.
- I have been amazed by the scope of the center's work supporting students and offering cultural engagement
- opportunities. I encourage you, if you haven't already done so, to learn more about all they do and
- to support their efforts. You can drop off non-perishable food items and hygiene products, or you can
- become an event sponsor or a donor in other ways.
- My connection to the Neil Marshall raised my awareness of other IU culture centers, of the Black Film
- Center and Archive, and of the African American Arts Institute. In addition to their vital role with
- students, they enriched my life and yours through their programming and performances as we are experiencing
- here tonight. Oh, now I've lost my place. There we go.
- Please do all you can to ensure that these centers and institutes receive full funding, what they deserve.
- Continuing my journey through the UU Racial Justice Task Force, I and others are honored to help support
- the work of another community treasure, Resilience Productions.
- This theatrical company was formed 10 years ago by Dr. Gladys Devane, Elizabeth Mitchell, and Danielle
- Bruce. Their original live performances and talkbacks raise awareness and celebrate the contributions
- of African Americans to our city, state, and country. These women, through resilience productions and
- their many other endeavors, have been instrumental in my learning.
- There are many others who share their stories and work tirelessly for a better world for all. Many,
- many of you who are here today. I ask, please do more than thank them. Listen to what they are saying.
- Consider what gifts and talents you might contribute. If you're a bit clueless like me, take advantage
- of books and podcasts and other community groups to advance your learning.
- Especially as racial equity and justice are under active attack, you and I and our community have to
- do work together. In closing, I want to acknowledge and thank my husband, Vaughn Welch, who supports
- me in this work and contributes so much himself. Thank you.
- for this honor. Thank you very much.
- we give our award winner one more thunderous round of applause? So hello everyone, my name is Ramir
- Williams and I am proud to have received the 2025 Outstanding Black Leader of Tomorrow award from the
- Commission on the Status of Black Males. This award
- This award highlights the outstanding contributions made by young African-American men and women in
- our community through leadership, scholarship, and involvement. Receiving the award affirmed my commitment
- to leadership rooted in service, mentorship, and impact. The recognition was especially meaningful because
- it reflected not only my individual efforts, but also my dedication to uplifting the community, honoring
- those who paved the way,
- and investing in the next generation of leaders. With that being said, nominations for the 2026 Outstanding
- Black Leaders of Tomorrow Awards are now being accepted. We invite you to nominate a young person who
- inspires you. The 2026 deadline for nominations is February 1st. Again, February 1st. These awards are
- to be presented during the Black History Month Gala,
- on February 28th. To submit a nomination, please go to bloomington.in.gov forward slash BHM or scan
- the QR code that is shown on the screen. Now, speaking of Black History Month, 2026 marks the centennial
- celebration of the Black History Month here in the United States. The centennial celebration.
- The city's Black History Month planning committee is excited to bring you a full lineup of programs,
- including all of the events that you see listed here on the slide. To learn more about these events,
- please visit bloomington.in.gov forward slash BHM. Now, are y'all ready for the main event? I'm going
- to ask again, are y'all ready for the main event? I know I am.
- To help us introduce this year's keynote speaker, I would like to welcome to the stage Dr. Olivia A.
- Kay. Good evening. I'm here to introduce our speaker, Dr. Tracy Parker, historian, speaker, and author
- whose work examines African-American history, civil rights, and the intersections of consumer culture
- and social justice. An associate professor of history at the University of California Davis, she is
- the author of Department Stores and the Black Freedom Movement and is the co-editor of the New Civil
- Rights Movement Reader. Her forthcoming book, Revolutionary Love, explores intimacy and radical politics
- in the black freedom struggle.
- She is also at work on a long overdue biography of Coretta Scott King, drawing on rare archival sources.
- Busy lady. I'm sure it would surprise no one that the previous list I just mentioned is only a fraction
- of the work Dr. Parker has accomplished. You can read a more exhaustive list of her accomplishments
- in your program. Please do.
- Where am I? Rather than list more of her wondrous work, I'd actually like to take a moment and speak
- about my graduate school advisor and friend. I met Dr. Parker in the fall of 2015, my second year of
- graduate school at UMass Amherst. It didn't take long for word to spread around our tiny department
- about Tracy Parker, Dr. Tracy Parker. UC Chicago graduate and student of the renowned historian Dr.
- Thomas C. Holt
- Those first few weeks, it was almost impossible to catch Dr. Parker for a chat. Students were literally
- lined up outside of her office to talk to her. Real story. As one of her teaching assistants that fall
- semester, I had the opportunity to watch Parker in action in the classroom. Watching her captivate a
- 180-person lecture hall with her enthusiasm, emphasizing the significance of history for her students,
- was inspiring.
- I was determined to fashion myself a scholar in her likeness. And she quickly became my mentor and advocate
- as I pushed through my own graduate school journey. But rather than mold me into a historian exactly
- like herself, she taught me how to be a historian like me. That lady. OK, I'm not going to get emotional.
- Today, Dr. Parker is here to speak to us in honor of Coretta Scott King, a more than fitting choice.
- Alongside her forthcoming biography of Scott King, Dr. Parker's historical research and pedagogy has
- always centered the voices and experiences of women, especially black women, and their contributions
- to the texture of U.S. history. It is my pleasure to welcome my mentor and friend, Dr. Tracy Parker.
- Thank you, Olivia. I was not expecting to cry today. That was very sweet. It has been a pleasure being
- here today. I wasn't expecting to go to church. I wasn't expecting to learn so much about the community.
- So I thank you all for having me. And it really is a pleasure to be here. Sorry, I'm at that point in
- life. Yes.
- Today marks 40 years since the nation first observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday.
- This commemoration did not come by chance. It was forged through tireless work of Coretta Scott King,
- who after her husband's assassination turned mourning into movement, traveling the country,
- lobbying Congress, and uniting civil rights leaders, labor activists, clergy, and artists behind a bill
- to create a national holiday.
- Even after the bill was signed, Scott King did not consider the struggle complete. She went on to chair
- the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission, determined to ensure the holiday honored not
- only King's life, but also the principles that guided it, nonviolence, justice, and collective
- responsibility. Next slide, please. Martin Luther King Day is thus not merely a memorial to a leader.
- It is a testament to Coretta Scott King's leadership
- activism and unwavering commitment to justice. And yet Coretta is often forgotten on this holiday. If
- she's thought of or mentioned, it is only as his wife and widow, as only Mrs. Martin Luther King. But
- she was more than Mrs. King. She was also Coretta. In her 2017 autobiography, she writes, quote, how
- one became detached from the other remains a mystery to me.
- Most people who have followed my career from afar or even given me a second thought know me as Mrs.
- King. The wife of, the widow of, the mother of, the leader of, makes me sound like the attachments that
- come with my vacuum cleaner. In one sense, I don't mind that at all. I'm proud to have been a wife,
- a single parent, and a leader. But I am more than a label. I am also Coretta. So today, I want to tell
- you a bit about Coretta. Next slide.
- Long before she met Martin, Coretta had already forged a life shaped by political engagement and activism.
- Coretta Scott came of age in Jim Crow, Alabama, where racial segregation, discrimination, and violence
- shaped daily life. As a teenager, she saw white supremacists burn her family's home and later destroy
- her father's business for daring to remain independent. Yet her family rebuilt again and again.
- From her father, Obadiah Scott, who owned his own land, a lumber yard, and later a grocery store, Coretta
- learned inner fortitude, how to endure injustice without surrendering dignity or purpose. From her mother,
- Bernice Marie Scott, she learned the importance of education and was encouraged to aim for a life beyond
- being just a wife and a mother. Her mother told her, quote, if you get an education and try to be somebody,
- you won't have to depend on anyone, not even a man.
- As a child, Coretta excelled academically at Lincoln Normal School, a segregated teacher's college founded
- by former slaves in Alabama. In 1947, she carried her brilliance north to Antioch College in Yellow
- Springs, Ohio, where she majored in music and elementary education, hoping to find opportunity beyond
- the confines of Jim Crow.
- At Antioch, she became politically active while confronting the limits of Northern liberalism and came
- to understand that peace was inseparable from justice. Without justice, there is no peace. Coretta was
- the college's first black student majoring in elementary education. To complete the major, she was required
- to teach both at a private and a public school. She completed the private school placement without incident.
- But when it came time to teach in the public schools in Yellow Springs, she was denied solely because
- of her race. She took her case to the college administrators and the president. They backed the local
- school board's decision, telling her that black and white students should not mix. Even at a self-proclaimed
- liberal institution, the door of opportunity was closed to her. Eventually, she was given two choices,
- go teach at a distant segregated school or repeat a year at the private school.
- Coretta refused segregation and criticized the college's moral failure. She said this was the moment
- that pushed her into a life of social and political activism. Coretta soon became active in
- campus organizations for racial justice and peace. She met Bayard Rustin and embraced his philosophy
- of nonviolence. And she began to see herself as a pacifist.
- By 1948, she had entered national politics campaigning for Henry Wallace's Progressive Party, a third
- party challenge to Harry Truman and Thomas Dewey that advocated ending segregation, expanding voter
- rights for black Americans, providing universal health care, and opposing Cold War militarism.
- Coretta was among 150 black delegates at the Progressive Party Convention in Philadelphia, where she
- heard activist and writer Shirley Graham, later Shirley Graham Du Bois, deliver a powerful indictment
- of war, racism, and American hypocrisy. Later in Cleveland, she met Paul Robeson and sang for him, a
- moment she cherished for the rest of her life. By the time Coretta met Martin, she was already an organizer,
- a dissenter, and a woman who knew how to challenge injustice even when the cost was high.
- Next slide. After graduating from Antioch with degrees in education and music, Coretta Scott moved to
- Boston in the fall of 1951 to study at the New England Conservatory of Music, one of the most prestigious
- music schools in the country. In the second semester of her first year, a mutual friend served as matchmaker,
- setting her up with a young PhD student from Atlanta. That young man, as you can guess, was Martin Luther
- King, Jr., or ML King, as they called him at Boston University.
- Now, Coretta had dreams of her own, right? She was ready to pursue music and social justice, and she
- was not worried about a man, especially a minister. And she had no desire to date at that point, date
- or marry at that point in time in her life. Still, she eventually agreed to go on a date with him. Now,
- this is the thing. She tells this story about she, he gives her a phone call. Her friend calls her and
- said, can I give you his phone number? He calls and she says,
- What she remembered of that phone call is that he was speaking intellectual jive, is what she called
- him. He said something to the effect of, I'm Napoleon, and I want you to be my Waterloo. Let me just
- say, she was not very impressed, but she agreed to go on a date with him. The next day, he picks her
- up in his green Chevy truck while she's standing outside at the conservatory. And it's slightly raining.
- And she gets in the car, and she looks him up and down, and he looks her up and down. And she's thinking,
- oof, he's short. He's thinking, oh, she's gorgeous. He's commenting on her dress and her hair. And she's
- like, oh, well, it's just one date, right?
- At the restaurant, they chat easily about everything from questions of war and peace, to racial and
- economic justice, to capitalism versus communism. And after one hour, Martin became convinced that Coretta
- was meant to be his wife. She, on the other hand, wasn't even sure she wanted a second date with the
- man. She did say, however, that the more they spoke at that lunch, the more charming she found him.
- and the taller he grew in her eyes. She was so impressed by the fact Martin was unlike other ministers
- that she had come to know he was broad-minded, he was very intelligent, and he was committed to a life
- of service. As you know, they then marry on June 18, 1953, about a year and a half after their paths
- first intertwined. Ever independent and progressive,
- Coretta rejected convention at her wedding. She didn't wear a traditional white dress. She chose a blue
- waltz-length gown with matching lace gloves and shoes, blue representing the color of freedom. She insisted
- on having the ceremony at her parents' home in Highberger, Alabama instead of a church. She removed
- the word obey in any language implying submission to her husband from her vows.
- I know, I love that, right? And in a final move that was just as revolutionary as the other ones, she
- kept her maiden name in the line of the example set by her mother, Bernice McMurray Scott. Next slide,
- please. Over the next 15 years, Martin Coretta built a life that she had envisioned, a union of shared
- purpose where both could pursue their dreams while standing side by side in the fight for justice. But
- doing so was challenging.
- In the early years of marriage, Martin and Coretta made their home in Boston a city alive with academic
- energy and ambition. While Martin poured himself into his dissertation, Coretta filled her days with
- classes, pursuing her passion for voice and violin. Committed to achieving their academic goals and
- supporting each other's ambitions, they created a home that defied traditional gender norms. Martin
- did most of the housework and cooking, preparing southern favorites like oatmeal, pig feet,
- smother cabbage, and collard greens, allowing Coretta the space and time to complete her degree.
- Next slide. After graduating, the couple moved to Montgomery, Alabama, where Martin accepted a position
- as pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. On November 17, 1955, Martin and Coretta welcomed their first
- child, Yolanda Denise King. Next slide. Just weeks later, the Montgomery bus boycott erupted.
- Propelling Martin to the forefront of the emerging civil rights movement, the boycott plunged the kings
- into constant danger. On the night of January 30, 1956, a bomb exploded at their home while Coretta,
- their seven-week-year-old daughter, and a neighbor went inside. The front of the house was destroyed,
- but no one was injured. Martin, who had been speaking at a mass meeting, rushed home to find a tense
- crowd gathered outside, many armed but all determined to protect him and his family.
- Obi Scott and his father, Daddy King, rushed to Montgomery, hearts pounding, and begged the couple to
- leave the city. But it was Coretta, not Martin, who responded. With quiet strength, she stood her ground
- and said they were where they belonged. Next slide. As the years passed, Martin became a national leader,
- hustling from speech to speech, interview to interview, city to city, and protest to protest, while
- Coretta helped craft his speeches and sermons. Next slide.
- Amid this, the couple found time to expand their family with the births of Martin III in 1957,
- Dexter in 1961, and Bernice in 1963. Yet as the family grew, so did Coretta's frustration. Her role
- as wife and mother increasingly confined her to the home, and she longed for her own voice in the movement.
- And so she insisted on taking more of an active role. Next slide.
- And so she recalls an instance in her 2017 biography where she comes to Martin. She says, I want to
- be more than a wife and a mother. I want to be active, more public, and more visible in the movement.
- And he says, I have a calling to do this work. And she said, honey, I have a calling too. And he said,
- are you unsatisfied with being my wife and mother of my children? And she said, it's not about you.
- This is about me. Next slide. After this, Coretta became a public figure in both the civil rights and
- peace movements. In 1961, she spoke out against war and nuclear weapons in Washington, DC. In 1962,
- while Martin was immersed in the Albany campaign, she traveled to Geneva, Switzerland as the Women's
- Strike for Peace delegate to the 17 Nation Disarmament Conference.
- She became even more vocal on peace issues as US involvement in Vietnam escalated and joined the Women's
- International League for Peace and Freedom. When Martin received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, she
- pressed him to make the international dimension of their philosophy of nonviolence more prominent. Their
- belief in nonviolence and commitment to human rights, she insisted, required speaking out on global
- as well as domestic human rights.
- By 1965, Coretta was spending more and more time away from home, deeply committed to these movements
- and carving out her own powerful role in these causes. In March of 65, she began holding a series of
- freedom concerts that helped the Southern Christian Leadership Conference stay financially afloat and
- brought the movement's message to life through song and storytelling. In April, she traveled to Detroit
- for a dinner honoring Rosa Parks, who despite her historic courage,
- had faced hardship from finding steady work and had struggled with her health. Next slide. Coretta spoke
- before the Women's International League for Peace in Chicago in May of 65, standing alongside other
- voices calling for justice. Next slide.
- On June 8th, two years before her husband's famous sermon against the Vietnam War at Riverside Church,
- she addressed an anti-war rally at New York City's Madison Square Garden, the only woman to address
- the crowd. More than 15,000 people gathered to hear her message of peace and resistance. Late in 1965,
- when her husband backed out of an address in Washington, DC, peace rally, she kept her commitment to speak.
- Following her appearance, a reporter asked Martin if he had educated his wife on these issues. Yes.
- And he responded, she educated me. Martin and Coretta traveled a lot, but remained devoted to raising
- their children. Coretta often felt deeply alone, especially when it came to caring for their children.
- On August 6, 1965, Martin was in Washington watching
- President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act. Coretta was at home with her sons, Marty and Dexter,
- who were both recovering from tonsil surgery. Martin was so busy that she hadn't even had time to tell
- him about the operations. Years later, she recalled it was one of the few moments when she felt sorry
- for herself. Supportive of his work, yet painfully aware of her own solitude. Still, she understood
- her role in the freedom struggle meant helping her children accept that their father belonged to the world.
- and could not always be the husband and father he wanted to be. Coretta also grasped the constant dread
- of what each day might bring. She witnessed Martin's every wound, every arrest, every sleepless night.
- Martin suffered from heavy depression throughout his life. And she shared the weight of his battles
- while facing her own deep-seated fears for her family's safety. To make matters more challenging, rumors
- swirled that he was unfaithful.
- The FBI once mailed an audio tape of poor quality that allegedly recorded Martin's secret liaisons with
- girlfriends. That day, Coretta listened to the tape and quickly dismissed it as the agency's attempt
- to break up their marriage and embarrass and compel Martin to commit suicide. Next slide. Through it
- all, Martin and Coretta remained steadfast in their commitment to each other and the movement.
- with Coretta's quiet strength anchoring both their family and the struggle, even as danger pressed in
- on all sides. The last campaign they were building when he was assassinated was the Poor People's Campaign,
- a multiracial effort to demand economic justice, advocating for jobs, fair wages, and improved living
- conditions for impoverished Americans through a massive protest in Washington, DC. But before he had
- a chance to attend the Poor People's Campaign in DC,
- Martin Luther King was shot on April 4, 1968, and killed as he walked onto the balcony at the Lorraine
- Motel in Memphis. Martin's assassination crushed Coretta, but it didn't break her. So even as she mourned
- her husband, she carried on. Four days after his death, she marched with nearly 50,000 people in support
- of the Memphis Sanitation Workers' Strike for better wages and working conditions.
- She was crucial to advancing the Poor People's Campaign even as her husband's former male collaborators
- sought to silence and marginalize her. She and other women leaders and activists would dominate the
- campaign's 1968 march in Washington, DC. On March 1st, Coretta launched a southern caravan of Poor People's
- Campaign from the same balcony where her husband was murdered and sang Sweet Little Baby Boy, Sweet
- Little Jesus Boy.
- She also declared her own dream at this event, where she stated, where not some but all God's children
- have food, where not some but all God's children have decent housing, where not some but all God's children
- have a guaranteed annual income in keeping with the principles of liberty and grace. Next slide. Less
- than two weeks later, during the Mother's Day March of Welfare Recipients, which was part of the Poor
- People's Campaign,
- She criticized the hypocrisy of a society where violence against poor people and minority groups is
- routine. She reminded the nation of its own acts of violence. Quote, neglecting school children is violence.
- Punishing a mother and her family is violence. Ignoring medical needs is violence. Contempt for poverty
- is violence. Even the lack of willpower to help humanity is a sick and sinister form of violence.
- I have to say I re-read that for today and I just thought how much it still resonates. In June of 1968,
- Scott spoke to the attendees of the Poor People's Campaign in DC and said, quote, women, if the soul
- of the nation is to be saved, you must become its soul. Women, she elaborated, must speak out against
- the evils of our time as you see them and must compel governments to put an end to every sort of persecution.
- Next slide. Coretta Scott King was a wife and a mother and the steward of her husband's legacy. But
- she was also unmistakably a political activist in her own right. Next slide. In the years after his
- death and until her own in 2006, she devoted her life to institutionalizing his memory and mission.
- founding the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Change in 1968, and helping to secure the
- federal King holiday in 1986. She also championed peace in women's rights. She forcefully criticized
- American capitalism and championed labor rights, as she and Dr. King always had, and became an outspoken
- advocate for LGBT rights, insisting that gays and lesbians should have just as much legal protections
- as any other group.
- She supported the Equal Rights Amendment and feminist organizations. Next slide. During the 1980s and
- 90s, Coretta advocated ending apartheid in South Africa by encouraging American companies to divest
- using the center as a forum for political mediation among South African political parties and visiting
- the country in 1986 to meet with leaders there, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Next slide.
- She urged wealthy Western nations to cancel Africa's immoral and unjust debt. Next slide. In short,
- Coretta Scott was a revolutionary figure whose legacy cannot be confined to who she was to Martin, but
- must be understood through what she demanded of America and the world. Today, as we honor king, or rather
- the kings, let us carry forward their unfinished work.
- In moments of darkness, may we choose courage. In the face of injustice, may we refuse indifference.
- And in our lives, may we become what they were, freedom fighters committed to justice for all. Thank you.
- Let's thank Dr. Parker one more time for that riveting presentation. We want to thank you for uncovering
- and unveiling the courage, the confidence, and the complexity of Mrs. Coretta Scott King. And we look
- forward to your work.
- And if you would be interested in hearing more from Dr. Parker, she will be back in Bloomington for
- the Soul Symposium from April 9th through the 11th at Indiana University. So please visit the
- MLK Commission's table in the outer lobby to pick up a flyer with more information. So for tonight's
- closing reflection,
- The commission is delighted to welcome a friend and former local pastor, Philip Amerson. Philip Amerson
- is president emeritus of Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois. His work spans
- nearly six decades as writer, pastor preacher, civil rights advocate,
- and theological educator in multiple places across our nation. Please welcome Reverend Philip Amerson.
- Wow. Dr. Parker, thank you so much. What a wonderful gift.
- What a wonderful thing. And my goodness, I was going to recognize everyone this evening, but there's
- a football game coming, so I won't do that. But Ruth, thank you. Thank you. And Ramir Williams.
- I hope the world has another 10 or 12 of you we need. We need you so much. Okay. Might we wage peace?
- Stony the road. Vacuum cleaner attachment, no. Not a minister.
- I have a calling too. No, she educated me. Thanks to Dr. Parker for this extraordinary gift, these insights
- of the essential role played by Coretta Scott King. A few of you will remember her visit to Bloomington in 1997.
- Some of us were there. I remember I witnessed this awe-inspiring generative wisdom, this courageous
- woman who was speaking even then about that triple threat of poverty, militarism, and racism. Her legacy endures.
- Now, some would say that our nation has entered, well, I would say, a new ice age. The actions of our
- state legislature and some in the university administration even make this a slice and dice age, where
- academic freedom and civil liberties are threatened, where centers and institutes
- know that their funding is ever more fragile as racism continues to raise its ugly head in the state
- house. Obviously, bluntly there. In his last book, Where Do We Go From Here? Chaos or Community, Dr.
- Martin Luther King Jr. noted that
- Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words,
- too late. He glimpsed the future. Well, I should say they glimpsed the future in which we now live.
- He identified poverty, militarism, and racism as she taught him to.
- the triple threats for a beloved community. From the reduction of SNAP and Medicaid programs to the
- tragic end of USAID, hundreds of thousands, make that millions, of our sisters and brothers will face
- an earlier death or an extended debilitating illness. War ravages across this world.
- with military action in Venezuela and threats to Greenland? Takeover. And then there are the obscene
- brutal treatment of immigrants, even native-born citizens. And one wonders, is it too late?
- In a few minutes, the IU football team will play for the national championship.
- I live to see it. And I'm a Chicago Cubs fan. We are thrilled that that team composed of young men from
- a wide variety, think of it, of racial and ethnic and language groups who've learned how to play as
- a team together
- and represent this university so well. And it's a university where one wonders about the way academic
- resources are now being undercut, so that the hard-won gains in addressing systemic racism are being
- lost. Those same young men that know how to work together
- have to go to class not sure that they'll hear the whole story. As Dr. King said, the Jim Crow checking
- account has been marked with insufficient funds. And some of us, and I would include myself, have discovered
- that Jim Crow never really ended. It's just below the surface.
- and now so much more obvious. Well, this was a hard thing for me to say, and I don't mean to be negative.
- As a matter of fact, I think, um-chah, there will be a brighter day is right. I think there was a time
- before the Ice Age, and there will be a time after the Ice Age. So in closing,
- As we conclude, I want to remind you of four small words spoken by one of Coretta Scott King's friends.
- Those words, you may do that. These may not sound like words that would fan the flames of change, but
- uttered by the small Rosa Parks
- Shortly after 5 p.m. on December the 1st, 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, were explosive words. I'm telling
- you to move to the back of the bus or you will be arrested, the driver threatened. And the same scene
- had played out 12 years earlier, if you don't know that history. This time, Mrs. Park simply and quietly said,
- those four words. You may do that." She would later say, when I made that decision, I knew I had the
- strength of my ancestors with me. She knew her majestic use of the word may instead of can, claimed
- the high ground as protester, as demonstrator, and not as victim any longer.
- Not one woman alone, there were now hundreds, tens of thousands, others sitting symbolically alongside
- Mrs. Parks. In our time, in this place, faced with the brutality and sadistic behaviors of this Ice
- Age, and these rogue border agents, and the betrayed
- reality we face with this racist complicity of state, local, and national leaders. Can we learn to calmly
- say, you may do that, but we know what we really mean. Might we wage peace as we continue to speak our
- no, as we act and march together recalling the witnesses of
- the Kings, both of them, and the intelligent, spunky actions of Mrs. Rosa Parks. This then is my prayer
- for us as we leave this evening from Dr. and Mrs. King, Scott King. Keep moving with tender hearts and
- tough minds. Keep moving.
- with the courage to love.
- That does conclude our program. I would like to thank you all for being here. As we transition to the
- IU game, you may all stay in your seats or go help yourself to concessions. If you are saving your seat,
- you can put your coat there. But again, safe travels and again, go IU and thank you all.