South Kingstown Celebrates the Dream in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“He's an icon and helped motivate all men of color and everyone in general to be yourself, pursue your dreams, and pursue your passions.”
Hosted by Towards an Anti-Racist North Kingstown (TANK) and the South Kingstown Racial and Social Justice Committee (SK RSJ), Celebrating the Dream was a family-friendly event in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. focused on social justice and working toward the beloved community. The event featured live music, guest speakers, games & activities, and snacks and took place at the Peace Dale Elementary School in Wakefield on Monday.
“What Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did for us cannot be stated with words,” said University of Rhode Island student Daryl Mensah from BOND (Brothers on a New Direction). “He's an icon and helped motivate all men of color and everyone in general to be yourself, pursue your dreams, and pursue your passions.”
“I grew up raised by a white mom in predominantly white school districts, and growing up I never felt like I belonged",” said Harrison Tuttle, Executive Director of the Black Lives Matter RI PAC. “Having events like this means a lot. It would've meant a lot to somebody like me because I would've felt more accepted...
“There was an interesting stat that I saw today on Instagram - because I'm a Gen Zer - and what I saw was that 10% of the population in the United States participated in the Civil Rights movement. I thought it was a lot more people than that, but it wasn't. So think about 10% of the population - how much change was made in such a short amount of time - and think about the role that everybody plays in that. Today we've had incredible performances - we've had storytellers, we've had performers, we have people tabling - we're all doing it in the way that we feel comfortable, but we're all making a change and a positive impact.”
“We're celebrating Dr. King's dream and his legacy, but I think most of the folks in this room know the way that Dr. King's legacy has been whitewashed by the powers that be in society,” said South Kingstown Community Organizer Fil Eden. “You're going to hear a lot of governors, senators, and talking heads on cable news, give speeches about what a great man Dr. King was. They're not going to talk about his blistering critiques of capitalism, colonialism, and war. They're probably not going to mention his concern that the biggest impediment to our liberation is the white moderate who prioritizes safety and stability over true justice. They'll say, ‘Oh, he was a visionary. He was a great speaker. He did things the right way. Not like those kids today who were too militant.’
“They'll say he was a great man. That's another way the ruling class tries to defang Dr. King's legacy - by making it about one man. This was never about one man. We're here celebrating Martin Luther King Day, and Dr. King deserves to be celebrated, but the ruling class would much rather us celebrate one man than Black Liberation Day or a Civil Rights Movement Day, because if it's one man, if there's a great man that can save us, that can make change, what do the rest of us do? Take a day off and sit around and wait for another great man to come around? And it is always a man in their telling, right?"
“We know, and Dr. King knew that we don't accomplish anything on our own. Real change happens when we work together. Dr. King's success was only possible because he organized with millions and millions of Americans, white, black, and brown, all over this country to fight for a better world.”
You can watch all the performances and the speeches here:
00:04:56 Eat the Pug - Performance
00:37:31 Daryl Mensah - BOND (Brothers on a New Direction)
00:44:08 Marlon Carey - Rhode Island Black Storytellers (RIBS)
01:12:27 Grenadine - Performance
01:40:51 Harrison Tuttle - BLM RI PAC
01:45:23 Fil Eden - South Kingstown Community Organizer
01:51:22 Rachel Briggs - Rhode Island Black Storytellers (RIBS)
In a separate room, tables were set up featuring a host of Rhode Island social justice groups including the Beloved Community Advisory Board (BCAB), Black Lives Matter RI PAC, Brothers on a New Direction (BOND), Direct Action for Rights and Equality (DARE), Jonnycake Center, Moms Demand Action, Nonviolent Schools RI, The Rhode Island Poor People's Campaign, RI Black Storytellers (RIBS), South Kingstown CARES, South Kingstown Racial and Social Justice Committee (SK RSJ), Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ-RI), Towards an Anti-Racist North Kingstown (TANK), The Womxn Project, Time to Advocate, Unitarian Universalist of South County Racial Justice Group, and Westerly ARC.