Approximately 2,000 people gathered in Albany on Monday, Jan. 19, to celebrate what would have been about the 80th birthday of the revered civil rights movement figure Martin Luther King, Jr.
Though the observance, held in the Empire Plaza Conference Center, is an annual affair, this year’s proceedings had a special significance for many who gathered there on the eve of President Barack Obama’s inauguration.
The day’s speakers often touched on the ongoing historic events, and a video montage of Obama’s ascent to the White House elicited rapturous applause from the audience. But big cheers were saved for the event’s keynote speaker, Dr. L. Oliver Robinson, superintendent of the Shenendehowa Central School District, who spoke passionately and eloquently about the status of King’s goals and dreams for America in a speech entitled Deferral Does Not Mean Denial.
Robinson’s words reminded the audience that while the world has changed for the better in the past 50 years, obstacles remain for people of all colors and creeds.
`Today I ask you a question. What happens to a dream deferred?` he said, pointing to the poverty, inequality and societal neglect in this country. `Those inhibitors of dreams and hopes still ring true today.`
With oratorical flourish, Robinson made particular mention of the way our nation teaches its children ` or how it fails to do so ` rallying against a system that examines fourth-grade test scores in deciding how many prisons to build.
`So much for No Child Left Behind,` said Robinson, to applause. `Education is the means with which we lift the veil of ignorance. Education is transcendent and transformative, and for those of you who don’t believe it, look at me, because I am a testament.`
Robinson’s message was not one of pessimism, but rather of hope for a better tomorrow.
`Now is the time for each one of us to lift ourselves from the quagmire of the past and stride purposefully towards the future,` he said. `Let’s look forward and let freedom ring knowing that the racial code in the narrative of the 20th century has been extinguished.`
In an interview, Robinson said that Martin Luther King Day has long held meaning for him.
`I think people often erroneously see the celebration of Martin Luther King Day to be a black issue but the reality of it is I think that much of the goodness that we see in society stems from those sacrifices that he made,` said Robinson. `For the past 10 or 12 years, we’ve [Robinson and his family] used that day as a day to go to observances in Albany, but also to try and engage in some kind of community service. I use the opportunity to talk to my kids about what it is to have a dream and pursue that dream.`
The observance has been held in the plaza since 1996, though the city has recognized the holiday since it was signed into law in 1983, according to state Office of General Services spokesman Brad Maione.
Former Gov. Eliot Spitzer was last year’s keynote speaker, and while Gov. David Paterson would have been a logical choice for this year’s proceedings (as he is the state’s first African-American governor), Paterson was in Washington, D.C., for the inauguration and was only able to address the crowd with a prerecorded message.
`Dr. Robinson brought a very heartfelt and moving address. He’s a fitting choice to be keynote speaker,` Maione said of Robinson. `He’s a prominent African-American and someone who embodies the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King.`
The observance saw many other speakers and performers, including heads of government and religion, The University at Albany Chamber Singers, The Guilderland High School Chamber Choir and the Umoja African Dance and Drumming group from Hamilton Hills Art Center in Schenectady. Price Chopper provided a commemorative birthday cake.
The program was followed by a march through Albany to the Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial at Lincoln Park, where there was a wreath-laying ceremony.“