Martin Luther King Day 2010

Bright Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church, site of the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day worship, was packed beyond capacity with folding chairs set up in the sanctuary to catch the overflow from the pews, people standing along the back wall and several groups standing outside the main doors.Participants convened at Badcock Furniture Store for the symbolic walk to the church.Robert Malloy, the new NAACP president, told the audience about purchasing used books from the white schools so that he could have texts and how those books were often filled with derogatory comments aimed at African-American children.The retired police chief said that such inequality was one of the reasons he joined the NAACP. He also recalled institutional racism from his time as a patrol officer, where he was directed to rip up tickets he wrote to white people."Now, what's your excuse for not joining this very organization that was instrumental in all of us being able to walk from Badcock?" Malloy said. "Remember, when you walk today, you didn't have to worry about the dogs. You didn't have to worry about the people taking pictures so tomorrow, when you go into your job, they say you are out of work because you marched. You don't have to worry. What you did today was only symbolic because you were walking in other people's steps."Scotland County Chairman J.D. Willis received a standing ovation from his speech on the successes of black politicians in an area that had once been dominated by whites."Thirty years ago, who would have thought Scotland County would have four black members of the school board?" Willis said. "Thirty years ago, who would have thought Laurinburg would have three black councilmen at one time? Thirty years ago, who would have thought Scotland County would have a black chief of police? Thirty years ago, who would have thought Laurinburg would have a black representative working in the state House of Representatives? Who would have ever thought Scotland County would have a county commission with five black members out of seven? Thirty years ago, who would have ever thought Scotland County would have a black sheriff? This is a great accomplishment. This is an accomplishment Scotland County would never have made without blacks and whites coming together."While the group was recognizing the successes of minorities in Scotland County and the contributions of King in the national struggle for equality, the audience also remembered the victims of the earthquake in Haiti.Rev. Garland Pierce collected $561.83 from those in attendance. The money will be contributed to the American Red Cross's efforts to take aid to Haiti.Monday's event was just one of a number of celebrations sponsored by the Scotland County Ministerial Alliance and the Scotland County Branch of the NAACP over the weekend.On Friday, the NAACP Youth Council honored the dream of Martin Luther King, Jr. with the group's 14th annual Martin Luther King Celebration, held at Avinger Auditorium on the campus of St. Andrews College in Laurinburg. The event was the first of the weekend's activities designed to reflect on the past, present and future effects of King's legacy. Audience members experienced a reading of excerpts from King's speeches, music, dramatizations of figures who played key roles in African-American history and culture, and performances by choirs and mime groups. Pastor Darrel "BJ" Gibson was the keynote speaker. "Thank you for the warm welcome, but all glory and honor belongs to Jesus Christ," he said in his opening remarks. "I thought long and hard about what I would talk about tonight as we celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; there's not much that hasn't been said about him, but the preacher in me said 'don't forget about Jesus'. And I realized that if not for the Lord, Martin Luther King wouldn't be who he is."Gibson then discussed the greatness inherent in all people, local as well as those more famously known."Why, when we celebrate Black History Month, do we have to look for people nobody knows about?," he said from the podium. "Local people right here in Scotland County are trend makers, too. What happened to honoring people of this county who made possible all the privileges we have today? Martin Luther King said that every man can be great because every man can serve. We don't have to go to New York or to Washington, D.C. to find greatness; we are sitting beside great people right now."Gibson's speech was met with clapping, shouts, and a standing ovation at the finale. Roy Thomas of Laurinburg was perhaps one of those in the audience possessing the "greatness" to which Gibson referred. "I was a corporal in the Marine Corps, serving in Viet Nam when Martin Luther King was assassinated," Thomas said. "When it happened, all of the black Marines were called to the rear, where we were seated before a chaplain who told us the news. We were shocked. People started asking, 'Why are we fighting here in Vietnam after what has happened at home?' There was a lot of tension between the black and white Marines, and some of us thought there was going to be a race war. We were given a cooling off period of about two to three weeks before they sent us back out. When we went back to fighting, things weren't the same, but we had a job to do."Thomas has seen a lot of improvement in the 40 years since King's assassination, he said, but acknowledges that more needs to be done. "Things have changed, but we still have a long way to go," he said. "Nobody knows everything."Other events for the weekend included a Unity Prayer Breakfast at the Highlands, where Pastor Kenneth Blease of Northview Harvest Ministries gave the address. On Sunday evening a Unity Service was held at Solid Rock Missionary Baptist Church in Laurinburg. Dr. O.T. McMillan, director of Bureau Evangelism of A.M.E. Zion International, was the keynote speaker.