She was the first Black woman to hold this position. Michelle Obama is a lawyer, writer, and philanthropist who was the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. Causes and Accomplishments as First Lady."Part two of our service is this inaugural watch party, so hopefully people will not stay home, but they will come and be in an environment of other people who feel good about this moment in history. "Everybody can't go to the inauguration," she said. However, much of the facility is closed for renovations, and it will not host an inauguration watch party.īernice King, who is also president and CEO of The King Center, which is dedicated to preserving and promoting her father's legacy, said she's not worried about the inauguration drawing people away from the annual celebration at Ebenezer Baptist Church, which will include watching the inauguration on a big screen after the service. The National Civil Rights Museum - the site of the Memphis motel where King was fatally shot on a balcony on Ap- is hosting a food drive and blood drive, and touring a new exhibit focused on African-American women in the civil rights movement. In Montgomery, Ala., where King did some of his early civil rights work while pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, the annual parade and rally at the state Capitol are to be held as normal Monday, though some prominent black politicians will miss it because they'll be at the inauguration. Avenue in southeast Washington has been moved to April 20, the 50-year anniversary of King's release from a Birmingham, Ala., jail. The Baltimore parade, typically a major event in the majority-black city, will be held Saturday. Day parades have been moved to avoid conflicting with the inauguration. In Washington and Baltimore, however, annual Martin Luther King Jr. Inaugural planners also say there will be a float honoring King in the parade to the White House after the swearing-in ceremony. Obama also plans to honor King throughout his inaugural weekend, beginning by asking Americans to volunteer in their communities on Saturday to honor the civil right leader's legacy of service. "To me, it's like another elevation for my father." Having the president call for her father's Bible was a special moment, Bernice King said. As he takes the oath, Obama will be facing the Lincoln Memorial, where King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech 50 years ago this August. The president also plans to take the oath of office for his second term with his hand on two Bibles, one owned by King and one by Abraham Lincoln. Myrlie Evers-Williams, the widow of slain civil rights activist Medgar Evers, is slated to deliver the invocation. Obama plans to incorporate the legacy of the civil rights movement into his inauguration. "Martin Luther King's dream was the American dream." Like a prophet of old, he told of his dream that one day America would rise up and treat all its citizens as equals before the law and in the heart," Clinton said in his address. "Thirty-four years ago, the man whose life we celebrate today spoke to us down there at the other end of this Mall in words that moved the conscience of a nation. Clinton invoked King's memory in his inaugural address, and events were planned throughout the inauguration weekend to commemorate King. The only other time a presidential inauguration has fallen on the King holiday was in 1997 at the start of President Bill Clinton's second term. "I also think it gives some sort of validation to the significant work that my father made to this country, to this world, in fact." "I think it enhances the observance, actually, because it heightens people's awareness about the King holiday," she said.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |