LONG BEACH, NY. \u2014 On a frigid day that saw the occasional piece of ice falling from a Long Beach power line, calls echoed through a megaphone on West Park Avenue urging people to \u201cShow me what America looks like!\u201d The calls were met with responses of \u201cThis is what America looks like!\u201d It was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Long Beach, and a crowd that numbered into the hundreds was marching through the city to celebrate the legacy of a man referred to during the festivities as, \u201cThe Dreamer.\u201d <\/p>\n
The march began at 11:30 a.m., as members of the Long Beach City Council, the Long Beach Latino Civic Association, Moms Demand Action, multiple churches and Long Beach High School students set out from the North side of Laurelton Boulevard to walk East along Park Avenue, turning left onto Riverside Boulevard, doubling back until they hit Rev. JJ Evans Boulevard, finishing their trip through the city\u2019s streets by walking to the Martin Luther King Center. All the while, chants of \u201cKeep the dream alive,\u201d \u201cKeep the hope alive,\u201d and \u201cMLK Day\u201d rang out from the crowd. On one occasion, the marching crowd started singing, \u201cWe shall overcome.\u201d <\/p>\n
(Credit: Patch Contributor) Rev. Ronald McHenry leads the crowd down West Park Avenue in Long Beach. In the background, members of the Long Beach High School Step Team and Grand Marshall Herman Prophett hold a banner honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. <\/p>\n
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As the crowd filtered into the gym at the Martin Luther King Center, roughly two dozen tables with additional bleacher seating were set up to accommodate the crowd that organizers estimated was over 300 people. Shortly after noon, the celebratory program began with Minister Brian Horne leading the pledge of allegiance and singing \u201cLift Every Voice And Sing.\u201d Next, Horne introduced Long Beach\u2019s own Lisa Hayes, who would serve as the master of ceremonies at Monday\u2019s proceedings. <\/p>\n
\u201cToday is a day of service. Dr. King lived in service, he died in service,\u201d Hayes told the crowd. \u201cWe recognize it as a day on, not a day off.\u201d <\/p>\n
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Attendees heard an invocation from Bishop Mark Moses, and welcome remarks from King Center vice chair Adam Dejesus, who reminded the crowd of this year\u2019s Martin Luther King Jr. Day theme, \u201cMission: Possible.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThat is a message that unity is possible, service is possible, healing is possible, progress is possible,\u201d Dejesus said. Those things, the co-chair of the committee that planned the celebration said, are possible, \u201cnot because it\u2019s easy, but because we choose it.\u201d <\/p>\n
In his keynote address, Rev. Ronald McHenry spoke about what celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr\u2019s legacy means in the current political moment, invoking the name of Renee Nicole Good, who was shot by an ICE agent this month. <\/p>\n
\u201cSay her name, Renee Good,\u201d McHenry said. \u201cSay her name. Say her name.\u201d <\/p>\n
After every call to say her name, the crowd said \u201cRenee Good.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bible says, \u2018How can you love God and yet hate your brother?\u2019 I don\u2019t know Renee Good, but I don\u2019t have to know Renee Good to feel what her family feels\u2026 The cross has taught us to love our neighbor as our friend,\u201d McHenry said. \u201cFor those who have the courage to stand up, I’m asking for you to stand up. It doesn\u2019t matter how old you are, it doesn\u2019t matter what you look like, it doesn’t matter what you\u2019ve been through\u2026We have to stand up in this age that is retrenching our rights.\u201d <\/p>\n
Moving forward, McHenry said, would require unity. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is time that we awaken the dream that is inside us. This mission that is possible, this mission to bring us together, no matter if it\u2019s red or blue, no matter if it\u2019s immigration or someone who\u2019s a natural born citizen, we have to stoke the fires of justice and unity,” McHenry said. “We must put aside the differences and see the love and common ground in one and other. I understand the journey is a long journey, but my elders taught me that the battle is not given to the strong, nor the race to the swift, but to those that endure. We have to endure this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
The celebration was also marked by performances by the youth of Long Beach, with the Long Beach High School step team, the Smith sisters, the Chosen Generations Praise Dance Ministry all dancing throughout the program. Spoken word was performed by Omar Powell & Mikayla Williams, as well as Harmony Wells, Jaselle Elrod & Kim Smith. <\/p>\n
In the Youth Introduction portion of the program, Williams led the crowd in a call and response, saying, \u201cI am the dream\u201d at the front of the gym. <\/p>\n
The youthful contributions to Monday\u2019s program weren\u2019t lost on the adults in the room, either. <\/p>\n
\u201cI need everybody to repeat after me: I believe that children are the future,\u201d Hayes told the crowd Monday. <\/p>\n
While there was a strong youth presence Monday, there were also attendees who had been working in the Long Beach community for decades. Among them was 78-year-old John Henry Simpkins, a co-founder of the Long Beach Martin Luther King Center. <\/p>\n
\u201cWith all the trials and tribulations we\u2019ve been through since the inception of this center, today I\u2019m feeling really warm. The turnout, I think, is beautiful. I think they\u2019re still keeping the dream alive. And that\u2019s what it is about, keep moving forward with the dream, don\u2019t let it turn into a nightmare,\u201d Simpkins told Patch. \u201cKeep dreaming, keep making pieces and pieces of the dream come to realization. That\u2019s what\u2019s beautiful about it, and every year this crowd gets larger. That\u2019s what I look forward to\u2026I\u2019ve been here for almost all of [the Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations]. When we founded it in 1968, we envisioned it continuing to grow. There were a whole lot of road blocks, pitfalls, we overcame them. You see, today, over 50 years, we\u2019re still here. And that\u2019s thanks to the people of the community, the people of the city council, and the people of Long Beach, the citizens who felt the need for this to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Also among the attendees with decades of service in Long Beach were the Grand Marshals, Mother Kathy Williams and Herman Prophett. Williams was celebrated for her contributions to the NAACP and the North Park Civic Association, with Hayes highlighting Mother Kathy\u2019s rigorous tutelage as a Sunday school teacher. Prophett, on the other hand, was celebrated for his decades of service as a volunteer firefighter in Long Beach, rising to the level of captain in the fire department and serving as a public safety officer for both Nassau Community College and Uniondale Public Schools. Prophett was also awarded with the Hempstead Fire Department\u2019s life-saving award in 2023, after he pulled a man from a crashed vehicle before it erupted in flames. <\/p>\n
\u201cEach of them represents the spirit of Dr. King\u2019s vision through service, leadership, and lasting impact in the community,\u201d Dejesus told Patch. <\/p>\n
When it was her turn to step up to the microphone, Mother Kathy chose not to speak, but to sing, leading the crowd in an impromptu rendition of the gospel song, \u201cDown Through the Years.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cDown through the years, the Lord’s been good to me,\u201d Williams sang out. <\/p>\n
For his part, Prophett told the people of Long Beach to believe in themselves, even through life\u2019s hardships. <\/p>\n
\u201cLife challenges your confidence in yourself, but you\u2019ve got to believe,\u201d Prophett said. \u201cApply that power\u2026let that light shine\u2026continue to represent what we stand for, and no matter what color you are, we\u2019re here.\u201d <\/p>\n
For the organizers of Monday’s celebration, the coming together of young people and their elders was one of the most important parts of the event. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt was the entire goal. In order to move forward, you need to make sure you understand your histories. You need to know where you came from to know where you\u2019ve got to go,” Dejesus said. “And it was important that we honored those who came and, essentially, paved the way. And it\u2019s important that we inspire the people that are going to come after and fill their places.”<\/p>\n
For Simpkins, the presence of so many young people was exciting. At 78 years-old, the co-founder of the building that hosted Monday’s events said he wanted to show those young people that he supported them. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really about young people. They\u2019re carrying the torch, we\u2019re passing it. I\u2019m 78, but when I see young people in here I\u2019m impressed, because they\u2019re the ones that are carrying the torch, and that warms my heart when I see that,\u201d Simpkins said. \u201cNow I\u2019m \u2018old guard,\u2019 we\u2019ve still got to show, to let them know that we still support them. That\u2019s the most important thing, it\u2019s all about being a team, teamwork. Everybody has a part, everybody has to play their part and move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the afternoon’s program concluded, the whole crowd, young and old, lined up for a buffet-style meal, eaten together at the tables in the gym.<\/p>\n