Fresno’s Martin Luther King Jr. events are online this year. Here’s why and how to join
Annual events to honor and remember Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. began this week in Fresno and are being held online.
“After months of planning, it was determined that precautionary measures be put in place for COVID-19 and the safety of the public was our primary concern,” said Eric Payne, an executive officer for Fresno’s MLK Unity Committee and executive director of the Central Valley Urban Institute, about moving events online this year.
“It was recently bought to our attention this week that other credible threats existed that we should be prepared for, and we are.”
Payne said the committee, “in consultation with law enforcement officials,” will still “honor the memory, teachings, and legacy of Dr. King that speak of togetherness, peace, and unity as brothers and sisters.”
The events come a week after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, which included a man carrying a Confederate flag through the halls of Congress, banners proclaiming white supremacy, and a makeshift noose.
Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, was sitting in the House of Representatives chamber when rioters stormed Congress. He is being awarded Fresno’s MLK Community Award this year.
“Martin Luther King, Jr. was a leader among leaders in the 20th Century fight for equality and justice. It is a true honor to be recognized in his name,” Costa said Thursday. “Despite the progress made since the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, we have more work to do.
“The pandemic and policing issues we’ve witnesses this past year highlight continued injustices. Change starts when we work together. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an American hero and drum major for justice. We must carry on his work. I am committed to that fight.”
Kimberly Tapscott-Munson, who helped organize the Fresno events as a community engagement consultant with Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias’ office, said the MLK committee started hearing about a week ago that the Proud Boys were planning to disrupt any in-person events to honor King.
She said she is discouraging in-person MLK gatherings also for that reason, but that the Fresno committee was already planning to host their events online at the direction of public health officials due to rising cases of COVID-19 and the regional stay-home order. She said the city also stopped issuing event permits last month.
This is the first year the committee won’t host an MLK march in Fresno. Tapscott-Munson said it was a hard decision but the right one to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
This year’s commemoration celebration in Fresno is titled, “Where Do We Go From Here? Growing The Plant Of Freedom With Love And Justice!” Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday is a federal holiday. King preached peaceful, non-violent activism to advocate for desegregation and the fair treatment of Black people.
Sudarshan Kapoor, chair of the MLK committee who helped found the committee 37 years ago, said he hopes the 2021 events honoring King will be “a time for compassion and not for provocation or revenge or retribution.” Kapoor continues to teach “peace building and conflict transformation” at Fresno State at age 86.
He said King’s words continue to inspire and empower, and that his struggle “energizes and strengthens us.”
“His cause endures and hope still lives on,” Kapoor said. “And the dream he had shall never die.”
Fresno MLK Unity Committee online events
Most MLK Unity Committee events can be accessed via one Zoom link and the same Zoom ID: 815 8671 3287.
People can also access the events via the committee’s Facebook page; CMAC’s website, YouTube channel and app; and on Comcast Xfinity Channel 96 and AT&T U-Verse Channel 99.
A couple virtual events will be attended by a small number of invited guests and streamed online, organizers said.
Friday, Jan. 15:
- 11:45 a.m. virtual garlanding ceremony with Arias, Fresno County Superintendent of Schools Jim Yovino, and Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer.
Arias wrote in a statement that although people can’t gather in-person this year, reflecting on King’s “selfless commitment to equal rights and public service” is “critical during these times of division and unrest in our country.”
Saturday, Jan. 16:
- 9 a.m. drive-through community breakfast at the Clovis Police Department, 1233 5th St., Clovis. $5 pre-paid tickets required. Contact Erin Ford-Horio at 559-342-2476 or erinf@cityofclovis.com for information. The MLK committee didn’t include its Zoom link for this event. A pre-recorded video will be shared on the Clovis Police Department’s Facebook page featuring Gregory Barfield, Fresno’s assistant city manager.
- 6 p.m. virtual candlelight vigil with Kapoor.
Monday, Jan. 18:
- 9:15 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. virtual MLK celebration.
- 11 a.m. virtual commemoration program and community awards ceremony with keynote speaker Sabrina Kelley of Wells Fargo. Along with Costa, Fresno County’s interim health officer Rais Vohra will also receive the MLK Community Award. Yolanda Randles, executive director of Family Resource Center, will receive the Les Kimber Community Organization Award.
Fresno Pacific University virtual talks
The Fresno Pacific University Office of Spiritual Formation and Diversity will host virtual discussions to honor King’s legacy on Tuesday and Wednesday that people can join via Zoom, hyperlinks below.
Tuesday, Jan. 19:
- 12:40 p.m. to 1:50 p.m. virtual book celebration and discussion with the Hiebert Library about “Fannie Lou Hamer’s Revolutionary Practical Theology: Racial and Environmental Justice Concerns” by the Rev. Karen Crozier. The book provides insights into the life of a Civil Rights leader in the Jim Crow South who disrupted “deep-rooted systems of racial, economic and environmental injustice.”
- 12:40 p.m. to 1:50 p.m., “Why We Can’t Wait and Letter from a Birmingham Jail: A Conversation” led by the Multiethnic Association of Cultural Engagement (MACE). The discussion will be centered on King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.”
- 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., “Why We Can’t Wait: The Impact on Mental Health” led by Deshunna Ricks, author of “I Have Value” and a Fresno Pacific adjunct instructor. She will explain the ties between racial issues and trauma, and talk about healing and “working toward resilience in the face of oppression.”
Wednesday, Jan. 20:
- Noon to 1 p.m. “Why We Can’t Wait: Athletics and Activism” led by Fresno Pacific’s newly-formed Athletes of Color Alliance (AoC). It will examine recent displays of activism among high-profile athletes and “what it means for people to use their platforms to promote equity and justice.”
- 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. “Why We Can’t Wait: Addressing the Disparities in Education” by Angie Barfield, a program specialist at Fresno County Superintendent of Schools. Her work in leadership development includes advocacy for, and mentorship of, young students.
Other Valley Martin Luther King Jr. celebrations
Sunday, Jan. 17:
- 3 p.m. virtual “thematic exploratorium” program, “Relive the experience of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church!” accessible via the Fresno MLK Committee links above.
Monday, Jan. 18:
- Noon event with the Madera Coalition for Community Justice. Youth-led panel titled, “MLK to BLM: Where do we go from here?” and dedication of a Black Lives Matter street mural followed by a caravan through the neighborhood, 126 N. B St., Madera. Organizers said people can also participate virtually.
All National Park Service sites will offer free admission in honor of King’s birthday.
Feb. 11:
5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. MLK speech, art, and essay awards reception via the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools at the Clovis Veterans Memorial District, 808 4th St., Clovis.
Beautify Fresno cleanups for National Day of Service
Monday, Jan. 18:
Beautify Fresno, formerly known as Keep Fresno Beautiful, will host two cleanup events to launch “Mayor Jerry Dyer’s new initiative and to celebrate the National Day of Service on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.”
Volunteers can register for cleanup events at beautifyfresno.org.
- 9 a.m. to noon at Mariposa Plaza in downtown Fresno with Dyer, co-sponsored by the Downtown Fresno Partnership and Clean Fresno.
That cleanup event will concentrate on the area around Fulton Street between Amador and Ventura Streets, and H Street and Van Ness Avenue. Volunteers can sign-in beginning at 8:45 a.m. at Mariposa Plaza.
- 10 a.m. to noon at the Lowell Community Garden in the Lowell neighborhood (East Belmont Avenue and North Park Avenue), co-sponsored by Every Neighborhood Partnership, the Lowell Community Development Corporation and Lowell residents.
Volunteers will focus on cleaning Belmont Avenue, between Van Ness and Glenn avenues, and will include locations such as the Lowell Community Garden and San Pablo Park.
“The National Day of Service is observed on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day to honor the legacy of the late Reverend King,” a Beautify Fresno statement reads. “Residents are encouraged to use the holiday as ‘a day on, not a day off’ and look for ways to volunteer to make their communities better.”
Beautify Fresno leaders said they will follow guidance from national Keep America Beautiful advisers and public health safety protocols.
This story was originally published January 15, 2021 at 9:30 AM.
