Clinton Hill Community Action (CHCA) will host When King Came to Clinton Hill: Celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington and “I Have a Dream” Speech this Sunday, August 27 from 1pm to 4pm in Clinton Hill. This event is sponsored by the New Jersey Martin Luther King Jr. Commission.
To honor Dr. King’s legacy and to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington and “I Have a Dream Speech,” CHCA will recreate his walk through Clinton Hill in 1968, just 8 days before he was assassinated. Starting at Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church, the march on Clinton Hill will continue along Hedden Terrace toward Clinton Avenue. Upon reaching that intersection, the crowd will be greeted by singer and songwriter Seychelle Elise, who will perform her rendition of a song by Aretha Franklin, a proud supporter of Dr. King and his work.
From there, the march will proceed up Clinton Avenue to the corner of 10th Street and Deliverance Temple, formerly B’Nai Abraham Synagogue and one of King’s stops in 1968. There, famed musician Joshua Nelson will perform a Mahalia Jackson selection. Jackson famously shouted to Dr. King during his 1963 speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, “tell ‘em about the dream, Martin, tell ‘em about the dream!”
11-year-old Newark Public School student Selasie Amemasor will tell us about the dream at Deliverance Temple, as she will deliver Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech as he did 60 years ago.
From 10th Street, buses provided by Newark Public Schools will be on hand to shuttle attendees to the final destination on the route, Malcolm X. Shabazz High School, where they will be greeted by the Malcolm X. Shabazz Marching Band. Formerly South Side High School, the Shabazz auditorium is the spot where Dr. King delivered a rousing speech during his visit to Newark in 1968.
At Malcolm X. Shabazz High School, Dr. Marion A. Bolden, Chairperson of the Newark Public Schools Historical Preservation Society and Chair of the Essex County College Board of Trustees, will host a conversation with members of the Class of 1968 and other individuals about their experiences during Dr. King’s final visit to the city.
Newark NAACP President Deborah Smith-Gregory will then moderate a panel discussion with distinguished leaders in Newark, including: Larry Hamm, Executive Director of the People’s Organization for Progress; Ryan Haygood, Executive Director of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice; Asia Norton, Esq., President of the Newark Board of Education; and A’Dorian Murray-Thomas, Chair of the New Jersey Democratic Women’s Caucus and a member of the Newark Board of Education.
Information about this event can be found at www.clintonhillaction.org/events.
