Meridian community members shared joy and hope as they honored the late Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. this weekend.

An MLK Virtual Celebration took place at First Union Missionary Baptist Church Sunday evening and was also livestreamed on Facebook. The celebration featured speeches by Meridian pastors and music.

Meridian Community College’s MLK Commemorative Celebration went virtual. The college created a video featuring performances by MCC students, an address by Alcorn State University’s president and words shared by other individuals.

Pastors and community members celebrate the holiday

The Rev. Gary Houston, who organized the MLK Virtual Celebration, said that its theme was “Keep Hope Alive: Moving from Chaos to Community.” Pastors reflected on King’s life, and community members sang uplifting songs.

The Rev. Charles Johnson, pastor of Fitkins Memorial Church of the Nazarene, led the congregation in song. Johnson, a Civil Rights leader, was present when King spoke at First Union Missionary Baptist Church.

“I remember when Dr. King sat there,” he said, pointing to a chair in the front of the church.

The Rev. Melvin Hendricks, pastor of First Union, was also among those who spoke to the congregation.

“This occasion allows us to reflect from whence we came,” he said.

Hendricks said that students now can attend any college they want to. He said that when he was young, African Americans were only openly welcome at some universities such as Alabama State University and Alabama A&M University.

The celebration also highlighted the achievements of women. The Rev. Cornelia Naylor, the pastor of New Hope C.M.E. Church in Columbus, spoke to the congregation. She emphasized that King chose non-violence.

“Dr. King was a minister. … He knew, as a minister, he was to love and not hate,” she said.

Naylor also read quotes by the civil rights leader.

“If you are seeking the highest good, I think you can find it through love,” she quoted King.

Stacey Miller, Reconciliation Week committee chair, watched the livestream of the celebration. She said King’s message of bringing people together and speaking out against injustice is just as relevant today as it was during his life.

“I thought it was a very much-needed recognition in honor of Dr. King,” she said of the celebration. 

Meridian Community College honors King

The Rev. Augustine Palimattam, pastor of St. Patrick and St. Joseph Catholic Churches, offered the opening prayer in Meridian Community College’s video.

“Lord God, you led your chosen people from slavery in Egypt to the freedom of a Promised Land,” he said. “We ask you to lead us, our community, from any enslavement to hatred, ignorance, fear, racism, injustice or anything else that prevents us from being the community of love and respect that you want us to be.”

Felecia M. Nave, Alcorn State University president, was the keynote speaker for the celebration. She noted that “collective voices” can bring about change.

She said that during Mississippi’s 2020 legislative session, educators, businesses, religious leaders and others came together “with a single cause in mind: to change the flag in Mississippi.”

“Because of our collective efforts, Mississippi was able to achieve that which had eluded us for over 100 years,” she said.

The Mississippi Legislature retired the 1894 flag, which contained the Confederate battle emblem, in June. The state ratified a new state flag this month.

Veldore Young-Graham spoke in the video on behalf of the Charles L. Young and Doretha Young Foundation, which offers scholarships to MCC students. This year’s recipients of the scholarships are Destiny Clark of Meridian, LaCaiyah Taylor of Noxubee County and Ethan Archie of Meridian, according to an MCC press release.

The video included MCC staff reading quotes by King. The video also featured a performance by the MCC Gospel Choir, which sang “Down By The Riverside,” and a performance by MCC student Kajsa Cole, who sang “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”