A march commemorating Martin Luther King Jr. Day, led by the drum lines from Hopkinsville and Christian County high schools, will begin at 8 a.m. Monday at Hopkinsville Community College.
Beginning at the Talbert Drive side of the college, the march will head to North Elm Street and then to Glass Avenue for a program at the Performing Arts Center in Christian County Middle School.
Dr. David Kabithe, a general surgeon in Hopkinsville, will give the keynote address on health and wellness.
The Human Rights Commission of Hopkinsville-Christian County announced plans for the march honoring King’s legacy. Partners in the commemoration are Christian County Public Schools, The Salvation Army, Men2Be and the college.
“By working together, there are no limits to what we can achieve in building the beloved community,” Idalia Luna, the commission’s executive director, said in a press release.
Members of the community are encouraged to participate in the observance. School board member Tom Bell issued a challenge for students to join the march. The school with the largest representation will earn a traveling trophy to keep for a year.
Monday’s observance of MLK Day is a national holiday. Schools and government offices will be closed.
The theme this year — chosen by King’s daughter, Dr. Bernice King, CEO of the King Center in Atlanta — is “It Starts With Me: Shifting Priorities to Create the Beloved Community.”
Everyone participating in the march should wear a mask, organizers said.
In addition to honoring the legacy of the slain civil rights leader, MLK Day promotes public service. The Salvation Army will be collecting gently used coats at the middle school auditorium to help people in the community.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
