Charlotte-Mecklenburg MLK Celebration

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Our community recently came together to

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honor the legacy and life and enduring

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vision of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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through a full week of programming. We

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were proud to engage more than 5,000

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residents creating spaces for

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reflection, dialogue, celebration, and

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service. From the divine nine panel

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discussion to the reef memorial to the

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back to the basic basketball showcase,

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the holiday parade, the growing the

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dream lunchon, the national observance,

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and the CMS arts and writing contest.

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Each event reflected the strength and

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spirit of our community.

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This work was made possible through

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meaningful partnerships. We extend our

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sincerest thanks to the MLK holiday

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planning committee, the Charlotte

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Mechanburg Community Relations

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Committee, the city of Charlotte,

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Meckllinburgg County, Charlotte

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Meckllinburgg schools, the faith

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community, and the elected officials and

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city leaders who showed up and engaged

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in supported this work. We are also

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deeply grateful to Atrium Health, Food

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Lion, Bank of America, USA, and WBTV

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whose continued support helps us make

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this celebration possible year after

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year. This is the work of the Charlotte

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Meckenberg Community Relations.

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Advancing unity, strengthening trust,

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and supporting a more connected

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community. I am honored to share this

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work and grateful to everyone who's

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helped make this celebration a success.

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Heat.

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Heat.

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Heat. Heat.

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You will be

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glory.

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There are more seats here if folks want to come in and take a seat. And there are some seats over here as well.

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I see. I see.

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Good morning. Welcome, welcome, welcome to the 2026

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Martin Luther King Jr. Wreath laying ceremony, which always takes place on

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Dr. King's birthday here in Charlotte. And so we begin the commemoration this year of the of Martin Luther King Day.

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and weekend with this wreath laying ceremony and we are so grateful that you have come. We're grateful for your

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presence. My name is Reverend Dr. Ben Boswell. I am a member of the wreath laying ceremony committee and I'm

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grateful to be your MC for this program today. At this time, I will get us

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started by inviting Nick Walker, the director of the Meckberg County Park and Recreation to come forward. Nick,

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good morning. Good morning. We can do a little better. I know it's cold, but good morning. Good morning. There we go. Um I anytime we are able to

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hold um a moment like this in one of our parks is a is a is a gift. It's a precious moment for us to be able to

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reflect and think about the importance and significance of moments like these. Uh today we are gathered in Marshall

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Park named for James B. Marshall Senior who was the city manager of Charlotte from 1935 to 1940. Um, this park is an

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incredibly significant park for a variety of reasons. One, it's its proximity and location in the heart of

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our city. Makes it a place to gather for multiple reasons. Um, some of them very visible and vocal. Uh, sometimes uh

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bordering on univil. Um, but it is an important space nonetheless. And it's

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because it is here and always available for those purposes. Uh it's also a great

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opportunity to take a step away um right in the middle of the city and have a

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moment of quiet and peace. Um and I hope that it will continue as it has um since

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1973 continue to serve that purpose. So thank you for being here and um I'm not

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sure if I'm supposed to introduce uh the Nope. I'm going to kick it over to you. How about that? That's much simpler.

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Thank you so much, Nick. Now for our opening prayer. I would like to invite the Reverend Octavia Baker from the

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associate minister of Mayfield Memorial Missionary Baptist Church to come give our prayer.

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Good morning. Let's pray. Righteous

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and just creator of heaven, earth, and all creatures we within, we pause today

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in this sacred space and time to thank you for your faithfulness to those you created, for giving us life this day.

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We're thankful to step away from today's tasks and cares to remember your servant, a soldier,

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a teacher, an advocate, and a Christian pastor, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King,

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Jr. He fought and died on this earthly battlefield to encourage others to fight

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a different kind of war in a different way. So we remember his enacted words that

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again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. He fought for the

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oppressed, the disenchanted, the overlooked, the mistreated,

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stepped on, abused, and those killed by others.

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Remind us this day that we are dependent on each other for help in trying times

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and to act like it. Otherwise, as Dr. King said, we must learn to live

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together as brothers or perish together as fools.

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So today, we lay a wreath to remember his life, work, and his death. In his

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last church sermon, Reverend King spoke about his funeral and asked not for attention or self-serving praise to be

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spoken of him. Instead, he requested others to point to his God and say that

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he tried to give his life serving others, loving others, feeding the

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hungry, clothing the naked, visiting those in prison, and loving and

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serving all humanity. Our father and maker of diversity of all races, tribes,

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cultures, nations, thank you for loving your people and shoring us up through

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the good times and the bad times and the seemingly impossible times of

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affliction. Thank you for your foot soldier, Reverend Dr. king and how he lived to

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serve and teach others of his faith about a different way of love. Thank you

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for this soldier who fight fought in a spiritual army that's still fighting

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spiritual warfare today. Almighty distiller of justice, giver of

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peace, and lover of righteousness, may Dr. King's memory encourage us all to

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remember his life and words. So we keep charging up this hill and fighting other

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folks unrealistic expectations that people who are different must live in

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and be subdued by their fantasy. May Dr. King's sacrifice and words

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stabilize us in the reality of knowing what's right and what's wrong and center

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us in understanding and recognizing truth from lies so that we disseminate

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the history of our ancestors and the warriors before us.

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Grow hearten heads father into spiritual maturity as we comprehend the full

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essence of Dr. King's message about loving others. He said, "One day we will learn that the

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heart can never be totally right when the head is totally wrong. May our

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hearts grow in the seedbed of righteousness so that our heads are discerning

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vessels of truth, life, and light that promote the irrefutable right of people

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to live as humans and not as hunted animals. Please humble humanity's hearts.

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Bless this day and bless this gathering for the purpose of peace in the world.

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All witness, wisdom, goodness, love, and peace we affirm together. Amen.

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Amen.

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Thank you for that powerful prayer, Reverend Baker. At this time, I'd like to invite Terry Bradley, the interim

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director of the community relations committee, to come forward to bring greetings.

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Good morning. Good morning. This will be quick. Um, I want to say, um, welcome and I'm actually standing in on behalf

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of our chair, Sam Smith, who, um, was unable to make it this morning.

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um he um um wanted me just to step in and on behalf of the Charlotte Mechckinberg Community Relations

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Committee um send a warm welcome to everyone. Um thank you to um uh the MLK

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planning committee for putting together this event. They do a lot to make this happen and we want to make sure we thank

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them for all the work that they do. Um also, um if there are any CRC members

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here, if you could just raise your hand so we can the crowd can see you. Let's acknowledge them.

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The community relations committee um has been doing this work for uh this year will be about 66 years. So they've been

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working with the community and that and they've been doing a great job at this work. And so Sam along with um the vice

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chair um Emanuel Leot, welcome and I hope you enjoy the rest of the program.

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Thank you, Terry. At this time, I would like to invite our mayor, mayor of the city of Charlotte, Mayor Viles, to come.

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Oh my gosh, it's so cold out here.

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And you know, I'm I'm from South Carolina, not North Carolina. So, so but

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um good morning to everyone. I want to say thank you for being here. Thank you for the um ability to persevere no

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matter how what the weather is to be able to do something that we need to do and continue to learn from. We gather to

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honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a man who called our native nation to live to

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its highest ideals, equality, justice, and freedom. Many people forget

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that Dr. King walked the streets of Charlotte, North Carolina, fighting for those very initiatives that we've been

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talking about. His dream of a beloved community still guides us even if we

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face new challenges. Today, we renew our promise to continue

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his work with compassion, courage, and faith with each other. We're building a

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city, a city where everyone has the chance to move forward through affordable housing, better

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transportation, and access to good jobs. Everyone deserves the opportunity to

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thrive in this city. And there's no matter whether it's your neighborhood, your income, but working to what you

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want to be and do is very important. Dr. King's courage opened doors for me and

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for so many others. Without his vision, I may have never had the honor to serve

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you. Each of us carries a story by both progress and struggle, but we know the

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journey is not over. Dr. King's light still shines over our

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city, guiding us toward the beloved community that he imagined and wished

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for. Let this wreath remind us to keep walking with hope, love, and faith, and

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to know that we will overcome. Thank you for this time this morning.

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Thank you so much, Mayor LS. At this time, I'd like to invite Commissioner Mark Derell, the chairman of the

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Meckllinburgg County Board of Commission.

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Thank you and good morning everyone. So, I do realize that it is cold today

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and it it it um but it was remarkable when I think about it because it's not

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lost on me that so many people endured not only the cold but

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harsh conditions that none of us could ever imagine and we stand on their shoulders and and u while we're in the

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cold today. think about if they would have given up just because of weather conditions or

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you know harsh conditions and um so it's really an honor to be here today no

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matter what conditions that we find ourselves under. I stand here this morning knowing beyond a shadow of a

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doubt that I'm the embodiment of the dream that was spoken about that we

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refer to so many times. And um I uh it's just it's overwhelming to be here and to

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think about the sacrifices that were made just to allow someone that looks like me, someone that looks like our

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amazing mayor and each and every one of you you and what you do in your respective um occupations

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and we owe it to them and we stand on their shoulders and that's not lost on me at this moment. So, I just felt the

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need to have to say that as we go through this uh ceremony. I certainly want to thank all of the CRC members. Uh

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thank you so much for your work. Uh to my brother Sam Smith in his absence, I want to thank him for his work and the

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vice chair and everyone that uh contributes to this community. I stand here today on behalf of the nine member

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board of county commissioners. It's an honor for us to participate. want to thank our county staff for their work

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and and continuous efforts. Also, I want to shout out uh Commissioner Towns and Ingram who's here. Thank you, ma'am, for

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being here at large commissioner. Um and as we celebrate Dr. King's legacy,

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I really hope that we use this year to re-engage, to recommmit and reclaim our

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shared sense of humanity. Hopefully, we will do more in practice

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than rhetoric, for progress does not come from words alone.

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Since the last time we were here, our struggle for social justice has certainly intensified, and our endurance

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as a community and nation is constantly being tested.

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We've witnessed rising inequalities and the erosion of our basic rights, our privileges, and longheld social norms.

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So, as we celebrate and honor Dr. King's legacy, may we also use this year's

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observations to realign our moral compass that he spoke about and our willingness to

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spring into action whenever injustice is a foot.

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63 years since the I have a dream speech and 57 years after the mountaintop

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speech in Memphis, we as a nation continue to grapple with

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waves of injustice, manufactured oppression, and indifference.

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The same tangible harm that Dr. King and many others sacrificed their lives for.

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As challenging as these times may be, Dr. King's life, his legacy, and love

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remind us that our shared humanity and unity will be paramount to our success

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in the work that lies ahead. Your board of county commissioners will

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continue to stand firmly behind Dr. King's dream and teachings, activating

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our bold commitment through various investments and programs and service to all of our residents. So, let's use this

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year's observation to rise with what Dr. King called a greater readiness and

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determination rooted in dangerous unselfishness.

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May we continue to build on our progress together. And in the words of Dr. King,

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nothing would be more tragic than to stop at this point. So, thank you

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everyone and God bless you.

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Thank you, Commissioner. At this time, I'd like to invite Fernando Little, the senior vice president and chief access

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and opportunity officer from Adrien Health.

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Good morning everyone. Would like to thank the city of Charlotte and the CRC for bringing us together this mo this

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morning for this moment of reflection. Today we stand at Marshall Park to honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther

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King Jr., a leader whose dream was rooted in justice, equality, and the

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belief that every person deserves dignity and opportunity.

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Dr. King once said, "Of all the forms of equality, injustice in health is the

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most shocking and inhuman." Those words resonate deeply with us at Atrium

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Health, now part of Advocate Health. We know that health is not just about treatment. It is about access and equity

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and the ability for every individual to live a life of wellness and hope.

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This year, the King Center's theme is mission possible. Building community,

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uniting a nation in the nonviolent way. This theme reminds me and all of us that

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progress begins with unity in healthc care. That means breaking down barriers,

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listening to voice to voices that have been silenced and ensuring that no one is left behind

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because of where they live, the language they speak, or the resources that they have. At Atrium Health, we have an

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unwavering commitment to advance access and opportunity for all. When we talk

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about lifting everyone up, we mean belonging without exception. Patients,

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teammates, learners, and communities. In Dr. King's beloved community, justice is

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practical. The first language of care is dignity. Access is not privilege but a promise.

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And compassion guides how we deliver excellence every day. That's the

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community we're building together. Not someday, but right now at this very moment. At Atrium Health, we are

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committed to making this vision real. Through our enterprise strategy, we are expanding care into neighborhoods,

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investing in programs that address critical social drivers of health, and partnering with community leaders to

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create lasting change. From virtual care in rural communities to initiatives that

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reduce disparities in chronic disease, we are working every single day to

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achieve optimal health outcomes for all, no matter your zip code. As we lay this

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wreath today, let it symbolize not only remembrance, but a resolve, a promise

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that we will continue Dr. King's work, not just in words, but in action.

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Together within our city, our partners, and with our communities, we can build a

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healthier, more just future for everyone. That's our mission. That's our

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responsibility. And that's how we will honor Dr. King's dream. It's an honor to

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be on this for all journey with you. Thank you.

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Thank you, Mr. Little. At this time, I would like to invite our vocalist, Bethany Wary from Mayfield

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Memorial Missionary Baptist Church, to lead us in music.

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Jesus, you're the center of my joy.

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All that's good and perfect comes from

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you.

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You're the heart of my contentment,

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hope for all I do.

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Jesus, you're the center of

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my joy.

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When I've lost my direction, you're the compass for my way. You're

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the fire and light when nights are long and cold.

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in sadness. You're my laughter

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that shatters all my fears when I'm all alone. Your hand is there

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to hold.

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Jesus, you're the center of my joy.

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All that's good and perfect comes

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from you.

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You're the heart of my contentment,

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hope for all I do.

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Jesus, you're the center of

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my joy.

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You are why I find pleasure in the simple things in life. You're the

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music in the metals and the streams,

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the voices of the children,

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my family and my home. You're the source

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and the finish of my wildest dreams.

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Jesus, you're the center of my joy.

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All that's good and perfect.

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You're the heart of my contentment,

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hope for all I do.

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Jesus, you are the center

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of my joy. Jesus, you are

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the center of my joy. Jesus,

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you are the center.

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of my joy. Jesus, you are the center

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of my joy. Jesus, you are the center

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of my joy.

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Oh,

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my joy.

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Amen. Praise God. Bethany, thank you for reminding us of

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what was the center of Dr. King's life and also for honoring the late Richard

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Smallwood who we just lost. Thank you so much.

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At this time, I'd like to invite Dolores Reed Smith, the chair of the Martin Luther King Jr. Planning Committee to

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come. Thank you.

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I'll be very brief because everyone else has already acknowledged most of who I'm

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here to acknowledge. But I'd like to first acknowledge are there any other elected officials that are here? If you

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are sitting, if you'll stand, if you are standing, if you'll wave, we'd like to

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acknowledge you at this time. Next, I'd like to acknowledge any clergy. If you're sitting, if you'll

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stand, and if you're standing, if you'll wave to all clergy members.

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Now, I'd like to further acknowledge all the members, and y'all pay attention.

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All members of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Planning Committee, I want you to stand here.

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Uhhuh.

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It is not possible to do this alone and I am just humbled to lead this group of

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people who work very very hard every year. Now join them if you are a member

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of CRC or CRD.

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Y'all know I tell them what to do too. So sometimes I have to go beyond the

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committee and these people always step up to bat. Now in the audience we have

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some other sponsors who are here. If you are a part

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of Atrium, Bank of America, Food Lion or

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USAA, will you stand? Yeah. Come on up here cuz they can't see you.

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Come on up. Come on up here. They need to see who you are. Uh Marcus, are you

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not doing what you're told? Okay. Okay.

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Thank you so very much to all of these people who are standing behind me because all this year seven of our MLK

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events are because of these people who are here. So thank you so much to all of

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you. Normally uh sometimes cookie have rage

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and this morning I was like where is all Cassandra? I didn't see you cuz you know

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I would have called you out. I was like where is all this traffic and

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I saw the most beautiful site that I could possibly see. I got caught up in the traffic of the

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monks and it was I don't know you know cookie

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don't you know sometime I have my soft moments but it was just a beautiful

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sight to see how receptive the city was. I mean, there were people standing all

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along the route crying and waving and bowing and it was just a beautiful,

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beautiful moment to witness. So, uh, I say to Mayor Ly, thank you so much for

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the love that it looked like CMPD had. They were so caring and all around them

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and and as I said, everybody was very respectful and bowing and crying and

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handing flowers. It was just a beautiful sight for a beautiful day. So, thank

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you. I see my friend Nemesis who I talked to and he was keeping me up on

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the um the monks being here and I invited him and he's here today. So,

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thank you to all of you who are here and especially to these people behind me.

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Have a wonderful rest of your day.

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Thank you, Dolores. At this time, I'd like to invite Pastor Dean Miller, the co-chair of the MLK wreath laying

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ceremony to come give our speaker introduction.

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Thank you so much. Dr. Kia Hood Scott,

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a native of Clayton, North Carolina, a graduate of Winston Salem State

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University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in rehabilitation studies and a master's degree in

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rehabilitation counseling. She also holds a master of divinity from Wake Forest University and a doctorate of

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ministry from United Theological Seminary. Dr. Scott's currently serve as

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the proud fourth pastor of the Greater Galilee Baptist Church here in Charlotte, making history as the first

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woman to pastor that local congregation. I think that deserves a round of

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applause. Her leadership stands as a powerful testimony of faith, courage,

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and obedience to God's call. She's faithfully supported in ministry by her husband, George Scott, Jr. And Dr. Scott

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believes that all shall live and that God has great work for all of us to do.

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It is my honor and it's my privilege this morning to introduce my sister and my friend to some and to present to

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others our speaker for the 2026 MLK wreath laying ceremony after a selection

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from Sister Bethany Weary. The next speaking voice you will hear will be that none other than Dr. Kia Hood Scott.

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Please receive her by saying welcome Dr. Scott. Welcome Dr. Scott.

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There is a name that is so precious,

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a name so wonderful to me.

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This name is worthy of all praisees.

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Because of him I am free.

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That name is Jesus. Oh, how I love him.

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The one who gave his life for me

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because of love so unconditional.

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I will have life etally.

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His name speaks peace unto my storm cloud.

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His name speaks calm to my fears.

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And when I feel that no one loves me, his love

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is so near. That name is Jesus.

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Oh, how I love him. The one who gave his life for me

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because of love.

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I will have life eternal.

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Praise that name.

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Praise that name.

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Is that

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someday

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through time and space

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and finally see the face of Jesus

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and praise that name forever.

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Love him. The one who gave

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his life for me

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because of love.

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I will have life eternally.

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Is that glor? Glorious

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name. Wonderful

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name. Just

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that.

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Good afternoon to everyone and to our wonderful mayor mayor LS to our city

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officials to the amazing committee that has put this amazing program together

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today to my brother the Reverend Dean Miller and my friend and to all our

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pastor pastors and our leaders, our clergy, and those of us who stand in the

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name of justice. I bring you greetings into the and of the name of Jesus

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Christ, my savior, my redeemer, and I also bring you greetings from the greater Galilee Baptist Church, while I

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have the honor to serve as their pastor. Today I am honored to be here as a

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country girl from Johnston County. Uh down east is what we call it. A little

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small town called Clayton, North Carolina. Born and raised there. My family and my mother, my father always

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believed that we are not just a dream, but we are the dream.

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In 1929, a dream was born by the name of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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But in 1968, the dream did not die. It lives right here with us. So today, as

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we stand on this sacred ground, we stand here where memory meets responsibility.

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We stand where history whispers and consciousness responds. We stand not simply to remember a man, but to renew a

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mission. This wreath we lay today is more than flowers arranged in a circle.

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is a symbol that we must continue. It is a testimony that the struggle did not

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die with Dr. King and the dream did not expire with his last breath.

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It is a public declaration that the dream is still alive. Why? Because we

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are here. Today we gather and I want to use as a theme we are the dream.

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Not we inherited the dream. Not we admire the dream. Not we quote the dream

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once a year, but we live the dream 365 days.

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And if we're going to talk about a dream, then we must say what scripture that comes to mind, and the word

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declares in Joel 2:28, "And it shall come to pass after that, I'll pour out

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my spirit among all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy and your

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old men shall dream dreams and your young men shall dream see visions. This is not just poetry, Charlotte. This is

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prophecy cuz Joel speaks to a people who had no had known devastation of people who have

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seen loss of people who were trying to rebuild and God did not merely promise them restoration of crops and land but

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God promised them something deeper. the restoration of hope, the restoration of voice, the restoration of vision. God

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said, "I will pour out my spirit not just among one class, but among

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everyone." And this is where we are. The spirit falls where God's will and God's spirit

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is. So when we come to honor Dr. King, we're not honoring a only a civil rights leader. We're honoring a man who was

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captured by a vision. A man who dared to believe that the world as is does not

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have the final word. Dr. King once reminded the world life most persistent

43:19

and urgent question is what are you doing for others? That question still

43:25

echoes today. It echoes in our streets. It echoes in our schools, our sanctuaries, our courtrooms, our mosque,

43:33

our our faith communities. It echoes at this wreath asking whether remembrance

43:39

will lead us to responsibility because memory without movement is

43:45

hollow and honor with at without action is incomplete. Dr. Crane Jame of a nation

43:52

where children will be when uh we be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

44:00

Yet he also warned us that dreams do not come to pass simply because they are beautiful. They require courage,

44:07

sacrifice, and moral clarity. He said, "Human progress is neither

44:13

automatic nor inedible. Every step towards the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle. That

44:22

means the dream was never meant to rest on one man's shoulder. It was meant to be carried by many hands. all hands that

44:30

are in this place. My favorite theologian Dr. Howard Thurman understood the spiritual burden

44:36

when he wrote, "Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive."

44:43

And because what the world need is people who come alive.

44:48

The dream requires people who are alive in consciousness, alive in compassion,

44:54

and alive in courage. And today our courage has been tested. The dream is

44:59

being tested by ongoing attacks with voter rights. The dream is being tested with economic inequality. The dream is

45:07

being tested by racial injustice and ongoing crisis of violence. But we are

45:13

the dream. Dr. King warned us that justice too long delayed is justice

45:18

denied. Safety and justice are not enemies. They are partners.

45:24

I like fading hammer hammer too. She says nobody's free until we all free.

45:30

Freedom in is incomplete when it is selective. Now let us bring Dr. King's own word

45:36

back to the moment. Words he wrote from a not from a podium but from a jail cell.

45:41

In a letter from the Birmingham jail, he offered a line that still cuts through time and moral precision. And justice

45:47

anywhere is a is a threat to justice everywhere. That sentence is not just a

45:52

quote for history books. It's a warning to the president. It means if injustice can live comfortably in one

45:59

neighborhood, it will be eventually poison to another. So even then, Dr. King presses the

46:05

matter deeper. He says justice too long is justice denied.

46:11

So this is why the dream has always been more than hope. Charlotte, the dream is a demand, a holy instance that every

46:20

human being bears the image of God and deserves dignity and public life.

46:26

Dr. King was speaking to a society that wanted order without transformation,

46:31

calm without convention, conviction, and peace without justice. And he refused

46:37

to let the nation confuse comfort with righteousness. and church and family and friends and

46:43

those who are here. This is where Joel comes back to us again because God Joel says where the spirit is poured out,

46:50

people would dream and see visions. The dream in a broken world is to declare brokenness without will not be

46:57

per permanent. To a dream to dream in a divided nation is to declare hate will

47:03

not be final. To dream in an unjust system is to declare injustice has an

47:08

expiration date. All right. Hope, as Thurman says, is a song in our

47:14

weary throats. Our folks may be weary, but our hopes and dreams are still

47:19

alive. Lift every voice and sing till earth and heaven ring. So today we

47:26

declare and we believe and we know that all of us have a voice and all of us

47:33

have a dream. And as we lay this wreath, we are making a statement to the future.

47:40

We are saying democracy matters. We're saying economic justice matters.

47:45

We're saying racial dignity matters. We're saying that redlinining cannot

47:50

happen. We're saying that dream still has guardians. This wreath is a circle.

47:56

It reminds us that each generation must decide whether it will carry the dream

48:01

forward or let it fade into a ceremony alone. So let us let this wreath be more than a

48:09

tradition today. Let it be a vow. A vow to tell the truth. A vow to protect the vulnerable.

48:17

A vow to resist despair. a vow to keep marching even when the roads are long.

48:24

And we're not merely standing on history. We're standing inside of it.

48:29

And when the future generation asks what we did with the dream entrusted to us,

48:34

may this moment testify that we did more than remember. We believed it.

48:40

We lived it. We carried it forward because the dream did not end. The dream

48:46

did not fail. The dream did not die. But the dream lives. It lives in our voices.

48:52

It lives in our choices. It lives in our commitment to justice, dignity, and

48:57

love. Charlotte, we are the dream. And as long as we stand and speak

49:02

together, the dream will live on. Thank you.

49:17

Praise God. Thank you, Dr. Hood Scott, for that powerful message, that powerful word for us today. At this time, we're

49:24

going to form a unity circle as we are led in singing We Shall Overcome by our

49:30

vocalist, Bethany Wary. Let's

49:47

do it. school. Oh,

50:06

hey. Great to see you.

50:27

We shall overall.

50:39

Over

50:52

My God.

51:02

He shall

51:09

shall all be free. He shall all be free.

51:17

We shall be free.

51:23

We shall be free. So

51:35

deep in our heart

51:43

to be near. We shall

51:49

be free.

51:54

We shall not be silent. We shall not be silence.

52:03

We shall not be.

52:09

We shall not be silent.

52:33

We shall

53:02

Come

53:11

Please take your seats as we conclude our ceremony together.

53:17

It was good to get up and move, was it not? It was good to hold each other's hands

53:22

and get warm, was it not? Remember that warmth in the winter of

53:28

this season. I want to quick briefly recognize that

53:34

uh we have been joined by Sam Smith Jr. who is here uh the community relations

53:39

committee chair. Thank you Sam for being here and for all your work. Thank you so much. At this time I'd like to invite

53:47

Terry Bradley back to the mic.

53:54

All right. So we're going to close this on out and I'm between you and getting back warm. So, I'm going make it fast.

54:02

Um, so, um, I heard some key words in our in our message, and I'm going to kind of try to tap on to that. Um, as we

54:09

prepare to leave, um, this sacred place, I invite us all to pause and reflect,

54:15

not just on what we've heard today, but, um, on the journey we are all each called to take. Uh, this morning, I was

54:22

um, reminded of the walk for peace, and it was led by the Buddhist monks.

54:28

currently making their way across America. Their journey began in Fort Worth,

54:34

Texas. Step by step, mile by mile, city by city, and of course, state by state.

54:41

They're spreading a message of peace, loving, kindness, and compassion.

54:46

And though I didn't walk with them, the question they raised walks with me. What

54:52

can we do for peace? Now, Dr. King's legacy is not confined

54:57

to memory. It's a movement and an invitation to lace up your shoes,

55:03

gather our courage, and keep walking towards justice, equity, and love. The

55:09

road is not always smooth. The pace is not always fast, but every step matters.

55:17

That's what the moment the mo the movement is about. That's what MLK

55:23

planning committee has been molded for. Year after year, they work hard, often

55:29

unseen, is a testament to power of walking forward together with purpose. I

55:34

thank each and every last one of you on the committee for your dedication and hard work. The care and the attention to

55:42

details that you make. At the community relations department, we walk this journey daily, ensuring equal access,

55:50

expanding opportunity, and doing the slow, deliberate work of healing community, one conversation, one policy,

55:57

one connection at a time. And so I say this to all of us, keep moving. Even

56:04

when the road is steep, keep moving. Even when the steps are small, keep

56:09

moving. Even when you're tired, keep moving. Because motion matters. Because

56:14

the dream deserves momentum. And let every footstep be softened by

56:20

compassion. Let every mile be lit by kindness. Let every encounter, every act

56:26

of service be one more stride towards the beloved community Dr. King

56:32

envisioned. We honor his legacy. Not just be standing here, but by walking it

56:37

out. So let peace begin with your next step. And your next step should be to

56:44

the next event this weekend. Yeah, we have a parade that you can step in.

56:50

We have uh peace showcase that you can be at. We also have the growing the dream

56:56

lunchon, the national observance and the CMS arts and writing contest. So those

57:02

are steps that you can take next. I thank you all and may the step lead us closer to one another. Have a good one.

57:15

You can sing.

57:33

Mayor, mayor. Mayor.

57:48

Hallelujah.

0:00

Good evening everyone.

0:07

Good evening everyone. [Music]

0:12

So glad everyone could make it tonight. I'm going to ask you, brother, help me out just a little bit more. Brother

0:17

Tide. Thanks, Matt.

0:23

Grace and peace to you all of our family

0:30

in this community. Today we gather in great honor

0:36

of the courageous teacher and prophet Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

0:43

inaugurating this great week of activities and remembrances

0:49

to help us center again what is justice

0:56

and how do we make it come to pass. I thank God that these shepherds

1:04

and servants carry the light and love of the gospel

1:09

into every street corner and aspect of our communities.

1:15

All of your presence here is a testimony to hope, justice, and fellowship.

1:23

And so I ask the Lord to grant wisdom, strength, and holy courage to you as you

1:28

speak truthfully and boldly about justice, peace, and love.

1:35

To God be the glory and grace to each of you. I bring in the name of Jesus

1:40

Christ. Let's bow.

1:46

Oh God, our help in ages past, our hope for years to come,

1:53

our shelter from the stormy blast and our eternal home.

2:00

Thank you for the gathering. We remember a promise you made that

2:05

where we would gather in your name, there you would be. So from every walk of life we come,

2:12

from every vocation and avocation we represent,

2:18

from this dedicated Greek community, we thankfully gather

2:26

to speak words of truth and words of justice

2:31

to comfort the disturbed and to disturb the comfortable. And so now, God, we ask that you would

2:39

turn our deeds into noble actions, ministries of love. I call on you in the

2:46

name of Jesus. Amen.

3:06

Good evening everyone. Thank you for joining us for this distinguished divine

3:11

nine clergy panel as we honor and celebrate the life of the late Reverend

3:16

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on his 97th birthday. I'm Congresswoman Elma Adams

3:24

representing North Carolina's 12th Congressional District in the US Congress which includes the city of

3:30

Charlotte and the county of Meckllinburgg. As a proud member of Mayfield Missionary Memorial Baptist

3:36

Church, fondly known as the field, I'm proud to join my pastor, the Reverend

3:42

Dr. Peter M. Weary, in welcoming each of you to tonight's program for an

3:47

engaging, impactful, and insightful discussion from distinguished divine

3:53

nine clergy leaders. As a proud 48-year member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority

4:00

Incorporated, I extend special appreciation and thanks to my fellow

4:05

fraternity and sorority panelists for your participation. I regret I'm unable

4:11

to join you in person this evening. The Congress is in session and my work in

4:16

the people's house requires my presence in Washington to represent my

4:21

constituents back home in Charlotte, North Carolina. I do bring cordial

4:26

greetings from my colleagues in the US House, Speaker Johnson, Democrat leader

4:32

Hakeim Jeff, 62 members of the Congressional Black Caucus, including

4:37

our 36 Divine Nine members, the bipartisan H.B.CU CU caucus and the

4:44

Black Maternal Health Caucus. We have a special mission and an extraordinary

4:50

opportunity as members of the Divine Nine to honor the life and legacy of Dr.

4:57

Martin Luther King Jr. One of our own, a member of Alpha Far Alpha fraternity. As

5:03

a divine nine with a focus on scholarship, service, brotherhood, and

5:09

sisterhood, we have a lasting commitment to community empowerment and social

5:15

change, which continues to uplift and sustain communities. We're constantly

5:21

reminded of Dr. King's work. Life's most persistent and urgent question, he said,

5:28

is what are you doing for others? And so, as we assemble, defined by the

5:33

convictions we hold and driven by our shared mission to fulfill the dream Dr.

5:38

King left for us, we live that question every day. As the conscience of our

5:45

country, born from injustice, and empowered to run headirst, boldly, and

5:51

brightly into the righteous fight for equity and freedom. It is out of that

5:57

unwavering belief that we must carry with us as we have entered 2026.

6:05

Last year, we witnessed hateful acts from an administration withholding food assistance from our most vulnerable and

6:12

directly attacking health care, education, and civil rights. But despite

6:17

these hateful acts, we stood firm as a community that came to protect our

6:23

neighbors, the lost, the lonely, and the left behind. Divine Nine, in the darkest

6:29

moments, you were the beacons of light that guided our community to refuge,

6:35

just as Dr. King called on us to be. This year, as we face new inhumane

6:41

actions, the Lord has given us the strength to continue fighting back because he's given us the gift of one

6:48

another to respond to the cruelty our community continues to face. So, we must

6:53

fill food banks and food pantries so no one goes hungry when the federal government fails to act. And we must

7:00

ensure health care and affordable housing is available for everyone who needs it. We must hold bad bad faith

7:08

actors accountable who come to terrorize our city and we must ensure our power is

7:14

felt and our voices are heard at the ballot box. Divine nine brothers and

7:19

sisters, let's stand with hope, not hate, courage, not coward. And we must

7:25

side with divinity, not division, and meet whatever the moment together. as

7:31

your sorority sister, a believer in Jesus Christ, I will never stop fighting

7:37

alongside you because as Dr. King told us, the time is always right to do what

7:44

is right. So, thank you for being here and on behalf of the entire field

7:49

family, I extend my best wishes for an extraordinary event. God bless.

7:57

[Applause]

8:07

My name is Dolores Ree Smith and I have the privilege of serving as the chair of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Planning

8:14

Committee. Also, I'm a member here at Mayfield. So, welcome again to the field.

8:23

I'm going to take this time to acknowledge any elected officials who are in the building. If you would just

8:29

stand so that we'll see where you are.

8:34

[Applause]

8:40

And now I have the privilege of recognizing our sponsors for the MLK um

8:48

week. And we have seven events this uh year. So, this is the first of our seven

8:53

events. Our title sponsor is Atrium Health. Is there anyone here that's

8:59

representing Atrium, Bank of America,

9:05

Food Lion, and USA. And we do have a representative

9:10

from USAA. Miss Kimberly Young is the anti-moneyaundering

9:15

compliance manager for USAA. and she's going to come and bring us greetings

9:21

after which the newly appointed vice chair of the community relations

9:27

committee of which I serve, Mr. Emmanuel Maggot will come and give further

9:32

greetings. Thank you so much for your being here and we hope to see you at a lot of you. I know I'll see Saturday at

9:39

the parade, but we hope to see you at some of the other events. There are flyers in the northx of all of the

9:45

events and we'd ask that you would take one and be a part. Thank you so very much.

9:53

[Applause] Good evening everyone. My name is Kimberly Young and it is honored to be

10:00

here representing USAA. Thank you to the Divine Nine for creating space for conversations like this one we are about

10:07

to have this evening. Any gathering centered on service, leadership, and lifting up the next generation is

10:14

exactly where we should be, especially as we honor honor Dr. Martin Luther King's legacy. At USAA, service isn't a

10:22

slogan. It's our excuse me, origin story. For those of you who are not

10:27

familiar with USAA, we are a member-owned financial services company that provides insurance, banking, and

10:35

investment products exclusively to current and former US military personnel

10:40

and their families. Since USA opening uh our Charlotte office in 2022, we have

10:47

invested more than $2.2 million locally with a strong focus on education,

10:52

workforce development, and youth opportunity. Last year, we launched Honor Through Action, a $5 million

11:00

national commitment to expand meaningful careers, financial security, and

11:06

well-being for our military community. At its core, honoring through action is

11:12

about removing barriers and opening doors because talent is everywhere, but

11:17

opportunity is not. The belief that aligns perfectly with the divine nine's

11:22

legacy. For generations, these organizations have created access, built

11:28

leaders, and serve communities long before it was popular or profitable to do so. On behalf of USAA and our

11:36

Charlotte team, it is my honor to welcome you here this evening for what is sure to be a great conversation. and

11:42

thank you all again.

11:48

[Applause] On behalf of the Charlotte Meckllinburgg

11:54

Community Relations Committee, the CRC, I bring you warm greetings and gratitude. I am honored to serve as a

12:01

vice chair of a board whose purpose is simply but yet powerful. It is to bring

12:06

people together and strengthen our community. At the CRC and the community relations department, we believe

12:12

community is not built by accident. It is built through intentions, partnership, and action. We listen, we

12:19

collaborate, we work across differences to create fairness, equity, dignity, and

12:24

meaningful change. Tonight, we are especially grateful for the legacy and leadership of the divine mind in every

12:31

person in their respective places and organizations you all represent. And to everyone who has contributed to

12:37

making this event a success. Our panelists, the organizers, partners, volunteers, and supporters. Thank you

12:44

for your dedication and service. Your organization have long embodied service,

12:49

scholarship, advocacy, and brotherhood and sisterhood values that align deeply with the work of Dr. King and with the

12:56

mission of the CRC. As we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., We are reminded of his words. Everybody can be great

13:04

because everybody can serve. In a world that feels divided, uncertain, and heavy, let us choose service. Let us

13:11

choose unity. Let us choose to build community like no other. Right here, right now, the call to action is clear.

13:18

Stay engaged, stay connected, serve boldly, build bridges, and never stop

13:24

believing in the power of community to shape a brighter future for us all.

13:29

Because as we all know, together we stand as a community and divided we fall. Let's keep the dream alive. Thank

13:36

you and enjoy this powerful discussion. [Applause]

13:44

Good evening. My name is Karen Gibson and I have the honor of serving as chair of the fourth

13:50

annual D9 panel discussion. I'm very honored tonight to introduce my

13:56

friend, our facilitator for this evening, Dr. Stephanie Mohan. Dr.

14:02

Stephanie Mohan is an ordained clergy leader in the United Methodist Church and an organizational change consultant

14:09

with more than two decades of executive leadership spanning Fortune 500

14:14

leadership companies, nonprofit management, civic engagement, and public service. Dr. Dr. Han is an active member

14:22

of Alpha Cappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated and will be celebrating 25 years of sisterhood and service in

14:28

April. She presently serves as the chaplain of Omega Iota Omega chapter of

14:34

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. Stephanie says she works hard to stay

14:41

grounded in faith, family, and service. Please welcome our facilitator for

14:47

tonight's discussion, Dr. Stephanie Moore. hand.

14:55

How's everybody doing tonight? We're so grateful that you came out on this balmy

15:01

evening. I'm sorry. I'm a East Coast girl. It's chilly outside to me.

15:07

Um, we're here for great conversation from our panelists. We already had

15:13

worship in the back because, you know, when you get preachers together, we know how to worship God because God is good.

15:19

Amen. All the time. God is good. And so we have they have already established

15:25

questions in which we will ask. And I do believe uh sister uh Karen that there

15:31

will be note index cards at the conclusion for you to fill out if you

15:36

have some additional questions because we want to know what your questions are,

15:42

what you're feeling, and what you are seeing. Are we ready? Are we ready? All right. And so my job

15:49

is to hand it now over and allow this illustrious panel to introduce

15:55

themselves to us.

16:03

I pray that everyone is well. Uh I'm Reverend Ean Hagwood. I'm the pastor of

16:08

First Mountain Zion Missionary Baptist Church uh for the last almost 10 years. and uh I represent uh that church, but

16:16

also I am a member of Alpha Alpha Fraternity Incorporated with the Beta New Lambda chapter here in Charlotte,

16:22

North Carolina. Come on, show some love. Show some love. Yes.

16:29

Great evening everyone. I am Reverend Dr. Yolanda Holmes. I serve as an

16:34

associate pastor at New St. John Missionary Baptist Church. I am a proud

16:40

member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated. It is an honor and a

16:45

pleasure to be here with you all tonight.

16:52

So, good evening to everyone. My name is Donnie Garris. I'm the pastor of the Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, also

16:59

a proud member of Kappa Alphasai Fraternity Incorporated. All right. A part of the Charlotte alumni chapter.

17:07

Good to be with you this evening. [Applause]

17:13

Good evening. I am Minister Sha Williams. I am a proud member of the Omega Sci-Fi Fraternity Incorporated,

17:21

Zai Chapter, South Carolina State, and also the chaplain for the PYI chapter

17:27

here in Charlotte, which is the largest graduate chapter in Omega Sci-Fi Fraternity Incorporated.

17:32

All right. All right. All right.

17:37

Great evening. My name is Dr. Rico Wagner. I pastor New Foundation Church International here in Charlotte and I am

17:44

a very proud 35-y year in member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated

17:51

as I serve as the chaplain for over a thousand of us. Oh,

17:56

[Applause] good evening. My name is Quenton Goodwin. pastor of birth memorial United

18:04

Baptist Church in Mount Holly, North Carolina. I'm a member of Fraternity

18:10

Incorporated. Also member of the distinguished service chapter of fraternity

18:16

and member of

18:21

North Carolina, which last year was the largest

18:30

glad to be here today. [Applause]

18:37

Greetings. My name is Apostle Denise Gerst and I serve on the ministerial staff at New Outreach Christian Center.

18:44

I am a proud member of Zeta FBA sorority

18:51

incororated Delta Zeta chapter.

18:58

Good evening everyone. My name is Minister Tamila Bullard. I am a member of the Park Church here in Charlotte,

19:05

North Carolina. I am a charter member for the new Upsilon Sigma chapter of

19:11

Sigma Gamaro Sorority Incorporated and I am a 33 member a year member of that

19:17

organization.

19:24

Good evening everyone. Uh my name is Elder Jay Wells. I am a associate

19:29

minister, pastor at the historic Sherman Memorial Church of God in Christ right

19:34

around the corner today 1401 Paulwood Avenue and I serve here speak with you

19:39

on behalf of Iota 5 theta fraternity incorporated a charter member of the Gamma New Orleumni chapter here right in

19:46

Charlotte. I'm glad to be here with you all tonight.

19:53

Don't you just love when family just come together and have a good time? Let's give everybody a hand clap of

20:00

praise and adoration for being in this space and place today. Very good. So, we're going to mesh on

20:06

and we've already given set the protocol. Protocol has already been established and we know what we're

20:12

doing. So, our first question that we're raising this evening is this. How can

20:18

faith guide our response to the moral crisis of our time, including racial

20:26

injustice, climate change, inequity, while helping

20:31

clergy reclaim I'm gonna say it one more time. While helping clergy reclaim a

20:38

prophetic public voice that offers moral clarity without bar part um partism.

20:46

Awesome. One of the things about this question is uh take it from the biblical

20:52

perspective first. Faith, the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of

20:58

things not seen. Watch this. The reality is is that it's

21:04

going to take the substance of a hope to move to realities.

21:10

And one of the things that comes with that is that there is prophetic mentioning of various things that are in

21:16

this question here. When you talk about climate change, injustice, racial uh racial injustice, inequality, all of

21:22

this is tied to the responsibility that every preacher has to speak God's truth.

21:29

Period. And with that, that means for the creation, we should not litter. We should not be putting all these

21:35

pollutants in the air and things of that nature. We need to take care of the place that God has for inhabitants for

21:41

us. When it comes to racial injustice, inequality, there's a lot of things that are tied to that. We're experiencing it

21:47

right now. So, as preachers and as pastors, we have an onus and

21:53

responsibility. Matter of fact, we're obligated to speak the truth. And the truth, the truth is going to set us

21:59

free. Correct? But before we move forward, we've got to make sure that that voice is proclaimed

22:05

through Jesus Christ. I love the book Jesus of the Disinherited because it is just that Jesus was part of the

22:12

disinherited and because of that there's a truth that needs to be spoken that speaks to humanity and not just to a

22:20

select group of people. Preachers, we need to be on point when we come to the

22:25

pull pit and not be afraid of the establishment to preach the gospel every

22:31

single day, not just Sunday.

22:37

All right. Who else would like to speak to that? And I'm going to expand it not

22:42

just to clergy because we're all ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Who's next?

22:50

Same question or y'all want to move on to the second one? All right, we're going to move on. I see a readiness cuz

22:56

you knocked it out of the park, sir. You knocked it out of the park. You know, let me Yeah, go ahead. Go

23:02

ahead. Go ahead. No. No. Go ahead, ladies. Go ahead, ladies. Well, I'm going to I'm going to share this piece

23:07

adding to to what you've done so well and stated, but as clergy, when we go down to verse six, it also says that if

23:15

we don't have faith, it is impossible to please God. And so, we have to move beyond the four

23:21

walls because our faith isn't just exercised within the building. The faith is seen and exercised outside the four

23:28

walls. And so that's what we're talking about. What pastors need to do when we're speaking about these various

23:34

issues. That's right. I got a loud voice. Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on. Come on. That we are facing in our

23:41

communities. We can't just sit still and stand behind the pull pit. We have to shift our paradigm and shift our feet.

23:49

[Applause] Well, you took half of what I was going to say, but the most important thing is

23:55

that the pull pit is not in the church. It's everywhere you are. Everywhere I go, God is with me. So, we have to learn

24:02

to become whom we're looking for and continuously share the good news of the gospel. Teach Jesus. Not only teach it,

24:09

let them experience it just from coming in here. You are on fire. Let the footprint be evident. Don't let letters

24:16

determine how far we are. We're not confined. And it's something that she said, "Whom the sun is set free is

24:21

what?" Amen. All right. All right. We're just warming up now. We're warming up now.

24:29

Question number two, how do we move from talking about justice to actually embodying it within

24:38

our institutions, congregations, and communities? Who

24:43

would like to go next? I need to stand up.

24:49

Yes. Okay. How do we move from talking about justice to actually embodying it within

24:55

our institutions, congregations, and communities? We already know that faith without works is dead. We can talk a

25:03

good game, but if we don't leave this place and go into our communities and

25:08

put our hands to the plow, then what are we doing? We as not only ministers,

25:13

pastors, and congregants have to be involved in this fight. We have to be

25:19

involved in this fight. We can be passive sitting at home or you can do what the monks are doing right now.

25:25

They're expressing their faith by walking for peace.

25:30

Amen. [Applause] There is a particular quote that I love

25:38

to say to people. I can't hear what you're saying for seeing what you do.

25:43

Say it one more time. Say that again. I can't hear what you're saying cuz I got to see what you're doing. That's

25:49

right. And so when we talk about getting past talking, people are looking for action.

25:55

Love is an action word. And so when we think about the people that we love,

26:00

it's not just because you've seen them. It's because of what they've done and how they made you feel. And so we as a

26:08

people have to get past just hearing what people are saying and really seeing

26:13

what they're doing. And it's because of that that we'll move to the position where we're backing up and supporting

26:19

what people are doing. Let the truth be told, we're tired of hearing a whole lot

26:24

of what's going on around us. And if we're not careful, we can become

26:29

deaf to what we're hearing. And then it caused us to stop being in a place of

26:34

movement. And so we're going to have to waken ourselves up. We're going to have to get a Q-tip and clean our ears out so that

26:42

we're hearing. The Bible declares that we should have a spirit of discernment. And it's through that discernment that

26:49

we can know who we should follow and then who we should avoid. All right.

26:54

All right. I would like to bring two people into

27:01

the room. One is the prophet Micah. Come on. In Micah chapter 6 verse 8, he says,

27:10

"Look, God already told you." Uhhuh. He's already told you what is good

27:18

and what is required of us. Do it

27:24

justice. Do justice. Embrace

27:30

faithful love and walk. Live it. Behave it. Conduct yourself

27:40

humbly with your God. You want to know? He said, "I already

27:45

told you what is required to do it, to walk it, to live it, and to embrace it."

27:54

The other person want to bring into the room, I don't know if you have ever heard of this sister. I mean, she was

28:01

bad, bad sister, Dr. Prthea Hall.

28:09

Let me tell you a little bit something about Dr. Thea Hall. If you haven't read this book, I

28:14

encourage you to read the book called Freedom Faith by Courtney Pace.

28:21

Dr. Hall was bad. She was one of the women who were part of the 80% laborers

28:27

in the civil rights movement. Also one of the few women field workers in SNIK

28:33

student nonviolent coordinator committee founded in 1960 at Shaw University. Go

28:39

Bears in Raleigh. I'm a graduate of Shaw. She was a woman with a dynamic

28:45

preaching voice with great power and presence. And legend has it Dr. Pratha Hall

28:55

in 1962, Dr. Martin Luther King visited

29:02

an Albany, Georgia prayer service where there Dr. Hall spoke and

29:08

reportedly used the phrase, "I have a dream." Legend has it that after that service,

29:17

Dr. King sought and receive her permission to use

29:23

the phrase, "I have a dream in his own preaching." She was just that bad. But

29:31

she said this, and I quote and bring her into the room. She said that we can preach, we can shout, we can have a

29:37

great time in the Lord and do nothing to eradicate poverty.

29:43

Nothing to save our children from destruction. Do nothing to hold government companies,

29:50

society at large, and ourselves accountable for how we treat the last of

29:56

God's little ones. We can tolerate and even perpetuate

30:02

bigotry, sexism, classism, colorism,

30:08

agism, heterosexism, and all the other daily oppressions

30:14

which destroy people and break the heart of God without our own within our own

30:19

ranks. The truth is that when we perpetuate oppression within our own churches,

30:27

communities, I would add divine nine, we turn our back on God.

30:34

We are led, we are to lead by example and teach the world what the justice of

30:42

God requires of human society. The divine mandate to black churches,

30:51

black clergy, black people is to model

30:57

justice and model liberation. He has told us what to do. Model,

31:07

do it, walk it, embrace it, and live it.

31:14

justice and liberation. All right, I need some Yes. Yes.

31:20

Yes. Yes. So, we're going to pivot to um

31:27

question number three and we are living in a digital age.

31:34

Amen. Okay. Don't be scared of uh uh technology. How can faith institutions

31:40

use technology and storytelling to mobilize communities

31:46

for good? And what forms of accountability should church and clergy

31:52

and people embrace to ensure that everyone has a fair chance to

31:58

participate and thrive? Who would like to? Yes, sir. I'll take that one. Yes. Yes, ma'am. So, we do live in the

32:05

digital age now. And in this digital age, faith institutions, we should say,

32:11

can leverage technology and storytelling uh to mobilize our communities by doing

32:18

a couple of things here. By one, being innovative and thinking outside of the box, you know, because in this age now,

32:24

everybody's not going to come into the doors of this church. But what did the Bible tell us in Matthew 28:19? He told

32:31

us to do what? Go. Right. therefore and show to all the nations the gospel of

32:37

Jesus Christ. So by utilizing digital storytelling, we have face- based um

32:43

digital storytelling such as uh videos uh we're able to use podcast, written

32:49

narratives and social media campaigns to share powerful stories of resilience

32:55

uh of hope and transformation. So not just to get on and and share the

33:01

negative and to share hate and beat each other down but to uplift each other online. Correct.

33:07

And a lot of the times we can utilize various uh online platforms for

33:13

community building and engagement. Uh and that in that includes uh innovative

33:19

digital tools for outreach and services. Uh making sure that your church has a a

33:24

a website that's functional and userfriendly. um utilizing social media

33:29

and having I would say a diverse platform uh choices for all age groups.

33:35

Um because on Sundays when I teach my young adults and teenagers in uh Sunday school when I say Facebook they say

33:42

that's for old people. And I say they said we don't use Instagram. I said what do y'all use? We

33:48

use Tik Tok. So churches, if you don't have a Tik Tok, you may want to get a young millennial or someone to run that

33:53

for you and use that Tik Tok to spread that good news. Uh but the thing is um

33:59

as um Dr. Holm did say um not to be afraid of technology, let's use it for

34:04

the glory of God and for the upbuilding of his kingdom. Amen. Oh, I got a quiet church tonight.

34:11

Amen, brother. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. So, I'm going to yield the floor to uh someone else who may

34:17

want to share some technology experiences. Who wants to thank God?

34:23

Yes. Yes. Yes. [Applause]

34:28

And um one of the I would say don't get me wrong, one of

34:34

the positive things from the COVID age is that it pushed us a lot of our churches into the digital age. It forced

34:42

a lot of us into um the Zoom era and it really connected a lot of folks to you

34:48

know through Facebook through um online worship um and um you know a lot in my

34:57

church I tell you this story a lot of I have an older congregation and you know we're

35:03

still trying to get into the Zoom meeting format. Some of my members are like okay how do I dial in? And I'm

35:08

like, how do I dial in to this meeting um using the old format? And um so we

35:15

really need to really connect um and teach our older members to embrace

35:20

technology so that they can stay ahead um of the game and really embrace this

35:25

technology. and also our churches to uh establish and go beyond and establish

35:32

online ministries. Uh so that those who are participating in online worship

35:37

reach out to them as we do our uh those who are present in our in our pews.

35:45

Those who are participating online have someone to call them or reach out to

35:50

them and say, "Hey, what are your needs? We thank you for participating with us this morning." Um if it's communion

35:57

Sunday, reach out to them and say hey I would like to offer communion to you go

36:03

out to them let them know that they are a part of our congregation and our

36:08

church. Uh so let them know that they are a part um and we appreciate them being a part of our family um in this

36:15

digital age. Uh so uh technology brings a lot of opportunities in connecting uh

36:22

those who cannot be present with us. So um that's what we can build in our um in

36:29

our congregation. So excellent. Excellent. Excellent. Excellent. Someone else wants to speak on technology.

36:36

Yes. Mic check. There we go. Okay. Um so one

36:43

of the things that we did in our congregation in serving as the tech leader at our church which became a new

36:50

role because as you mentioned it became a painful experience for a lot of our

36:55

churches to stay connected during the co 19 pandemic because they simply did not

37:00

have the infrastructure to stay connected and to reach out to those members who were hurting the most and

37:07

being able to minister to them. So some of the things that we did we brought in subject matter experts. We found out who

37:13

in the congregation knew how to build a website, who knew how to do Facebook

37:18

effectively, and how do we bring our senior or wiser uh I call them uh senior

37:24

saints or those who are wiser in their in their walk with the Lord? Um how do we help them stay connected? How do we

37:30

bridge that gap? So, we taught them. We showed them what icons meant. We showed what it meant to mute your mouth or mute

37:37

the microphone. Um, but we we utilize the opportunity to teach, to share, and

37:42

to build upon and to let them know it's okay. This is what a laptop is, and this

37:48

is what your phone can do for you. And so, as as as leaders within the church

37:53

and as pastors, we must embrace the digital age because now we are farther

37:58

going into AI now. That's right. That's right. Right. So, we have to stay on top of that because these are the tools that we

38:04

need to utilize to be able to ensure that we are preaching the word and everyone is able to hear it once again

38:12

beyond the four walls. That's right. All right. Yes. Can I add? Yes. Go ahead. Go ahead. Go ahead. It's

38:19

a good subject matter. Dr. Han, you have an online you have an AI workshop and I did uh join in yours

38:25

and you have you present a lot of great information through your AI workshop. So, thank you for that. Well, thank you. Thank you. Yes. And I'm

38:32

going to ask the question in this room. Raise your hand if you're using

38:38

artificial intelligence AI in any capacity. Raise your hand.

38:44

All right. Yes. That's what I'm Yes. Excellent. That's why we're so brilliant, y'all. D9 is just brilliant.

38:52

How many of your churches are using artificial intelligence

38:59

and technology? Okay, so that's a little less. It is

39:05

important friends, siblings, that we really understand

39:11

what is happening with artificial intelligence. It's not going away. It's

39:17

been here for 52 years. And I will offer um sister Karen some information because

39:23

there is a workshop that I'm leading again um that is coming up. We have to

39:29

be informed. How many of your chapters are using AI?

39:35

Yes. Yes. We have a tremendous opportunity to learn and understand

39:41

because at the end of the day, we want the gospel of Jesus Christ to go beyond

39:46

our zip code, our geographical spaces because Acts 18 is real. We're called to

39:55

go. Say go. Go to the next question, please. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank

40:01

you. So the next question is many younger generations and this is why we

40:07

need to understand technology are stepping away from organized religion

40:13

even as they remain passionate about justice. How can faith leaders that's

40:19

everybody in the room bridge that gap in meaningful ways? Yes. One of the one of

40:26

the things with this is that you have the technology gap, but the reason not

40:32

reason, but I think one of the pieces to this is that everything is moving so fast. So, it's very hard to get young

40:40

people to slow down uh for whatever reason. The reality of movements, and I go back

40:46

to the civil rights movement, we're talking about King. The reason why I believe the civil rights movement worked is because where it was rooted. It was

40:53

rooted in the church. it was rooted in the church. I asked um Reverend Dr.

40:59

Oberry Hendrickx uh matter of fact a year ago, he's a noted theologian and so forth. Preachers know who he is. I asked

41:06

him the question. I said, "Do you think there's going to be another civil rights movement in this country?" He said, "Yes, there's going to be another one."

41:13

And the next question I asked him was, "Do you think the church will lead it?"

41:18

He said no. He said no. He said the reason why is because the church organized religion

41:26

has gotten so complacent unfortunately to the point that it does not strategize

41:32

itself toward more of the statutes of Christ and justice but it pins itself

41:38

more on popularity rather than peculiarity.

41:44

That's the that's where the issue is, I think. But the the younger generation, we have to teach them the aspect of that

41:51

understanding, but also us being older to understand how do we bridge that gap? They're pushing the church away. And

41:58

even Dr. King talked about it in um in his book, where do we go from here? Uh chaos or community. He has a whole

42:04

chapter dedicated to the Black Panther Black Movement. And he talks about their

42:09

benefits and pluses, minuses as well to that movement. He said the vigor is

42:15

there. He said but we can't get to a place where it becomes so militarized

42:20

that we move away from Christ. Christ was a radical. Yes, but he wasn't

42:27

violent. Okay? And I and I think this is where we got to figure out what how do we bridge that gap to bring that all in.

42:34

But if you ask me again, the church has to be the center. So, so I I I need you I'm going to stay right here because

42:40

that is a question at the end. How can the church bridge the gap? Give it give a one give one item that the church can

42:48

begin the work to bridge that gap. We must be accepting of the younger generation with their tenacity, their

42:54

speed and technology. As an older generation, the younger generation must

43:00

be knowledgeable that we've walked this walk a little bit longer. So there's certain things we've already seen, but

43:07

history has taught us. You need to go back and look at history to bridge the

43:12

gap. If you're talking about justice, you need to understand who has fought for uh fought for justice against

43:18

injustice and bridge that gap so there's a commonality. All right. Who? Yes, sir. Go ahead. Right ahead. And then we'll go to No.

43:26

No. Yes, you. He's such a gentleman. Just a gentleman. Yes. When you think about the youth

43:32

today, the difference is we were made to go to church.

43:38

They have the option to go to church. So when you think about this gap, the

43:43

gap is there because we are no longer making our children learn about the

43:49

church and to have that foundation of what it means. Because when you think

43:55

about Martin Luther King and you think about the church, the church was an

44:00

example. But when you saw the church, there were children in church. Look at

44:05

our audience today. You don't have the young adult or the teenagers that are here tonight. And then the question is

44:12

why? Because no one brought them. And so the difference is what can the

44:19

church do? We got to go back and start bringing the children back to church.

44:24

Start bringing them so that we can listen to them to hear from them because you can't lead without listening.

44:32

And so that gap can only become smaller when we start listening to them,

44:39

understanding because there was no Facebook when I was in high school.

44:44

Thank you, Jesus. um we didn't have all of this technology, but they use that as a tool

44:51

to be effective within this society. So, we as parents, we as aunties and uncles,

44:58

as mentors, we have to bring them back to that foundation of what faith really

45:04

means in order that we can then show them what justice means. All right. All right. All right.

45:12

And I think with that to the point of bringing them to church, the Bible says that your gifts will make room for you.

45:18

But what happens when children come to church and teenagers come? We have no room for them.

45:24

We do not capitalize on their gifts, every single generation has strength.

45:30

Every single generation. I know there's a discussion of which generation is the best generation, but every generation

45:35

has strengths. And what we've done in the church is we've pushed out their gifts. we've we've made no room for

45:41

them. So when they come to church, they don't see their place because there's no space for them. So we have to make sure

45:49

that when they come through the doors that they can see themselves in the church because the gifts are being

45:55

capitalized upon. Thank you. Can I add one thing to that?

46:00

Okay. Just just real quick. I'm be real quick. All right. So uh and she got on what I had in our notes here and that is

46:06

to empower youth leadership. Yes, there ain't yes. It's there. All right. Empower youth

46:12

leadership young people like this that want to be involved and let them sometime be involved in decision-m a lot

46:19

of times we let the decisions of the church be made up to uh what did Dr. Yo say the how' you say it the nice word

46:25

for old people. Dr. Yois the wiser. Wiser. Yeah. The wiser. Thank you. We

46:31

let the wisers make all the decisions and the young people actually said don't see any value in coming and doing

46:37

anything. One thing um that we do at our ministry, and I'll make this real quick, we have a youth church function. And

46:43

during that function, we let a lot of our teenagers serve as the teachers and

46:50

helpers during that youth church session. So, we have an adult that's in there with them, but we let the

46:55

teenagers fix the food, do the snacks, and they come every Sunday. Um they see

47:01

that as their place and that is their job. They're part of the ministry. And we have some that have graduated and

47:06

going on to college and we got some that are coming up now. But as I say that just give them something to do and

47:11

they'll come meet them where they are.

47:16

I I got to say it. I just got to say it. It starts before they get to church. We

47:22

have to take responsibility back into when we had a Titus woman in the church.

47:28

We had grandma who was serious about their children. We had mothers and

47:34

fathers serious about their walk. Um, I learned more about how to be before I

47:39

got the understanding of church. We got people getting saved for real now because they need to understand we have

47:46

to take accountability. We need power, not programs. We need to understand that

47:51

God has been here for over 2,000 years. He's been teaching us a long, long time.

47:58

We know what it's like not to have. We know what it's like to have. Grandma say you can't do it because we got to stop

48:04

being our children's friends. We got to understand we are parents. I'm in a parenthood situation now. I know that my

48:11

son who's here tonight, this is his first D9 event. He is an Omega Sci-Fi uh

48:16

member. And I wanted him to see the footprint that was laid before all of this so when he doesn't get confused who

48:24

God is. And I think what I I I pride myself on now is understanding that

48:30

Philippians 1:6 that he had already started this and he's going to be here until it ends. It's just going to happen

48:36

that way. But when we start taking accountability, wrong is wrong. That's just the bottom line. Where is Jesus in

48:42

all of this? We got to get back to who Jesus is, not crisis, but Christ. And we need to know that when he says it's so,

48:49

it is so. Um I think the internet was is is great, but it's made us lazy. Um,

48:55

it's something that we prayed about. We all said we wanted to stay home and guess what happened? We stayed home.

49:01

We stayed home. Now we know we don't want to stay home no more. We want I hear people say come outside but go to

49:06

church when you go outside and then go to other places. But I think um the

49:12

generation is screaming and we once were young. We once I love when they say uh y'all don't know no better. Y'all it's

49:18

just the players have changed. The game has not. And we got to just put God back where he's supposed to be. We got to put

49:25

so many things in the shelf where God is residing. And once we put him back where he belongs, everything, believe it or

49:33

not, is going to fall in place. But we got to get the power back. Who we are in

49:38

the body of Christ, everywhere I step, there is authority there. So he they will follow Jesus cuz they're following

49:45

me. Cuz they see it in me. In the grocery store, y'all, that saying it takes a village. It takes a village, a

49:52

township, a country, everything to know that we I mean the divine nine was put

49:59

together for that very reason to serve our community, but to be the example. I

50:04

said it before, be the change you're looking for. Amen. Amen. Yes. Yes. So, um Yes. I saw I saw that.

50:12

So, I'm going to let that young person in the back. So, first of all, I want people in this space because I I make I

50:19

make a mistake and say children, but y'all not children. Um, y'all young adults, could y'all stand up in the room

50:25

so that we could just see any everybody that's under 25 years old, stand up,

50:31

y'all need to sit down. Sit down. Stay up. Stay up. Stay up. Stay up.

50:37

Y'all show some love. Yes. Yes. Yes.

50:43

Yes. So, I'm now going to um go off script. Go off script. I'm gonna come

50:48

back here. Yes. Yes, ma'am. Yes, ma'am. The Lord said come on back here. What do you have

50:55

to offer to this conversation this evening? Uh Eric Hudson Jr. Iota Omega chapter in

51:02

Charlotte, North Carolina of IOTA for the fraternity incorporated. Um, one of

51:08

the things I haven't really that I haven't really heard is um, when we look at quoteunquote the

51:15

other side, there's a lot of Christian nationality, Christian nationalists that are making a stand in the cultural

51:22

revolution that's been happening. And there hasn't been a lot of, we'll say,

51:27

the black community, churches that have been um, on the other side of that. And

51:32

that's I think one of the issues that all we see as young folk is oh Christian nationalist this Christian this

51:38

Christian nationalist that terms of KKK all these other things making a return. We have nothing from the black church

51:45

that's really on the other side of that.

51:50

And it's really it's really anger inducing because we know where the black church stands but there's no there's no

51:57

fight from you guys. There's no energy from you guys. There's no effort to say,

52:02

"Hey, that's not what church is about. That's not what Christianity is about. That's not what the Bible is about."

52:09

There's no stance against that. And we are now a year. We are not even a year

52:15

into what this presidency is about. And there has been no stand. There has been

52:21

no effort to be like, "Hey, let's back quote unquote this politician because they're saying the right things." or

52:26

hey, we're not seeing enough in Charlotte to be like, hey, okay, they got a lot of stuff going on. Where's the

52:34

fight? We not seeing nothing. And and it and it pulls us away from the church

52:39

because there's a lot of talking and there's not a lot of action.

52:45

Thank you. Thank you.

52:51

So, so yes, I'm going to come over you too. Somebody I see my brother. Go

52:57

ahead. Stand up on it. Don't stick. You do. Do you mind standing up? Well said. You want me to stand up? You Yeah. Okay.

53:04

Well said, young man. Yeah. Well said. Cuz I was wondering, thank you for saying that. I was

53:09

wondering how to enter into this this this conversation. And uh I was sitting there thinking, you

53:17

know, there was this young person who was very

53:23

critical of the church and the black pastor. And it was one of these protests and

53:31

demonstrations that were going on and they just simply asked,

53:36

"Where are you? Where are you out here with us?

53:45

I see Dr. Rodney Satler here. Good to see you. And he and I have been a part

53:52

of William Barber's moral Mondays. We've been a part of now his poor

54:00

people's campaign, his his repairs of the breach movements.

54:06

And I used to wonder why he would always ask clergy

54:12

to come robed up with their stalls or whatever the stoalls or whatever and be

54:18

in the demonstration, the protest. Why come dress like that? Why not come in our jumpsuits? Why not come in our blue

54:25

jeans and all? No, come with your robe, your clergy robe. And I realized the reason why he was

54:32

asking us to do that was number one, show up out there

54:38

and then lead the fight. Lead the fight.

54:45

Our calling as pastors, our callers and preachers is to serve this present age.

54:53

Yes. This present age is is not the fight on the inside of the sanctuary.

55:00

It's on the outside. It's on the street. It's on the corners.

55:06

It's down at the government center. It's down in the education hall.

55:12

And so what you're saying is that we do a whole lot of praising on the inside.

55:18

Yes. But the praising was to give us energy and strength and boldness for the fight

55:24

on the outside. That's right. That's right. That's right. And so to bridge the gap is to show up

55:31

not only for our young people, but show up with

55:37

our young people. That's right. In this fight. Amen. Amen. Anybody else?

55:47

Okay. Yes. Yes. I'm loud. Okay. Hello everyone. My name is

55:54

Alpha Incorporated. And my question is many of you all up

56:00

there are of the deity of pastors and all of that. My question is there's the

56:06

national baptist convention, there's the progressive baptist convention, there's lot carry, there's logic kjic, I'm

56:14

sorry. What are the discussions? Piggybacking off of my brother over here because I was just saying to my sorers,

56:20

what is the conversation where we become we come together and be a vocal point in

56:26

the community as a black church? Because as a black church and with black members, we have power, monetary power.

56:35

And and um I saw Kamla Harris showed that as a D9, we have political power,

56:41

right? And in addition to I don't know if you all remember back in the day when someone tried to put on a um a reality

56:47

show about Gredom how we came together and got it off the TV. So the question

56:53

is what are the discussions and when do we erect that Michael spirit because

56:59

when God sent Michael he sent Michael to do damage in righteousness for him. So

57:06

the question is what are those discussions and how do we break those I call it um

57:13

silos of KIC Baptist Methodist we're all black right and it's impacting our

57:20

communities of color so that's my question in regards to where do we have our voice to combat that of the

57:28

Christian evangelicals [Applause] and I offer you know maybe we need to do

57:34

that at on a grassroots level, on a local level, um on a national scale,

57:40

there's so many parameters, so many leadership um things going on on the leadership. It's not so many

57:46

differences. I think on a local level, we have a more unified purpose and a

57:55

more grasp in the community. I think if we kind of lead the effort to get things going within the Charlotte

58:03

and Gastonia community that we can make things to work on a local level, I think

58:09

so. But yeah, so it's going to build up. It's going to take that and actually I

58:15

see um Karen standing up because we got about five more minutes. Um this is a combination of question number five.

58:23

um what lessons from our organizational traditions can help us navigate today's leadership. Um and I know every one of

58:30

these clergy up here and this is the rallying cry in our community. This

58:38

gathering today is the rallying cry of our community. And if we leave this

58:44

place, this is going that's not my end statement. If we leave this place and we do nothing, shame on us,

58:50

right? Shame on us. So, I'm going to combine um these questions, this last couple of

58:57

questions. Um what does it mean to do what is right when the right thing is un

59:04

um unpopular and costly? And how can faith communities become laboratories

59:10

for innovation? I'm going to throw in there justice and um rather than only sanctuaries for

59:18

reflections. So, we're going to mend those together. Um, you got one minute

59:24

each if you choose to speak to that. Ready, set, go. So, I think we got to embrace our

59:29

history and fight for our history. I think uh one of the I'm sorry. No, go ahead.

59:35

Okay. Go ahead. Um, you did. One of the um main threats that's going

59:41

on today that's really affecting um D9 and religious community is this thing

59:46

with disaffiliation. Um you see a lot of folks going online

59:51

disaffiliating from the their organization um and all these falsehood and they're

59:58

things are just filling their heads with um nonsense about

1:00:04

how you know things that's going on in their organization that's leading them to say

1:00:10

okay I'm just going to disaffiliate from my organization. We have to stand up and say, "Hey, you

1:00:16

know, as leaders, as members, as members of the religious community and as leaders of the denying, you know, we

1:00:24

have to embrace our history, our pride in the denying." Um you look at that

1:00:29

picture of um Martin Luther King's assassination on the Lraine Motel

1:00:36

um of those black men that were covering MLK and pointing all those men were denied

1:00:45

members of fraternities. So fraternities and sororities really shaped the service

1:00:51

and the leadership of our religious leaders. us, even us today here on this

1:00:59

panel. So we have to embrace and we got to fight um and protect our leadership,

1:01:05

our our history um against and just retach those folks of the importance of

1:01:12

um you know our the of the history of the D9 of our organizations uh because

1:01:17

they're getting a lot of information from the wrong people and it's shaping and and yeah a lot of misinformation and

1:01:25

you know and they have a voice that they're amplifying and unfortunately That's that's a major threat that we

1:01:31

have to fight and counter. Thank you so much. 30 seconds for the next person who's going to speak. 30 seconds.

1:01:37

Practicing God's righteousness is not a popularity contest. Can I say it again?

1:01:42

Yep. Practicing God's righteousness is not a popularity contest. Doing what is right

1:01:48

is going to be uncomfortable. As a matter of fact, you may suffer for it in some some degree. We've got to keep that

1:01:54

in mind. Divine N. If you look at every organization up here, it was started in

1:02:00

struggle in some level of struggle, especially Alpha because it was at a

1:02:05

white university where it was started. But look, they're telling the council council our organizations out. What

1:02:12

about other PWI fraternities and sororities? You don't hear that. You

1:02:18

know why they're telling us to cancel ours out? denounce uh Greek letter fraternities because there is a power

1:02:24

structure here. There is a power structure here. All right. So, keep keep it grassroots. There's so

1:02:30

much you can do with your church and with D9 in your church. Thank you. Thank you. Give some show some love. Go ahead.

1:02:36

Okay. As Thank you. As you saying, um what does it mean to do what's right when the right thing is unpopular? The

1:02:43

right thing has always been unpopular. If it was popular, everybody would do it. But it's always been unpopular. So

1:02:49

the right thing is to stand. Having done all that you can, you still stand. That's right. You stand on something.

1:02:55

You know when we say stand on business, well, you stand on the word of God. You still stand even when it's unpopular and

1:03:02

know that you're going in that you might lose some friends, that you might lose some people on the outside, but you're

1:03:07

still standing for what's right because it's right. That's right. That's right. That's right. Anyone else? Anyone else? 30

1:03:14

seconds. 30 seconds. So um some of the the short short short part of what I wanted to share in regards to this

1:03:20

question. I always say this particular mantra. You can never start off wrong

1:03:26

and expect to end up right. Righteousness requires us to stand on

1:03:31

God's word. To stand in faith and do not waver when others waver. Do not shift

1:03:37

course when others shift courses. You must stand and ensure that you are going to do exactly what you know God will

1:03:44

empower you to do. And so when we think about righteousness, we think about Christ and we think about what it is

1:03:50

that we need to do but ensure that we are standing and starting off right so that we can end in a righteous way. All

1:03:58

right. All right. Yeah. All right. One more. Also being able to speak truth to

1:04:03

justice. Speak truth to power. We got to be able to speak truth to power. We

1:04:09

cannot allow those who say we are not here to feed the needy. We are not here

1:04:14

to clothe the unclothed. We are not here to fill the homes. We have to do what

1:04:19

God has called us to do. And if we allow the narrative to be taken and many times, if you see in our political world

1:04:27

out here, they're quick to change the narrative and run with it because they have the microphones and now many use

1:04:34

our TV stations now to put the propaganda out there. So, we need to learn how to take that back. Take the

1:04:40

shackles off, remove the traditions, and let's get in the fight and be about that business that their young brother talked

1:04:47

about earlier. Well, well, friends, um, do I have time,

1:04:52

ma'am? Okay. All right. Yes. Um, Dr.

1:04:58

Hello, everybody. It's great to be with you all today. And I just wanted to say thank you, Kim, for that question that

1:05:04

you raised a while with us. And I just say thankful for the work that you do with the divine back.

1:05:09

I don't know how many times I've been we've been leading protests in the street and we got a group of gays and

1:05:15

and all the vine come out to march with us to protest

1:05:20

and I'm grateful for that. But one thing I see is that there is not a coalition of church groups that I think you all

1:05:29

are the

1:05:34

put together a group that says we're going to bring together things for justice and I just want to put a

1:05:40

challenge out there for you today. Can you all help bring together a community for justice so that when something goes

1:05:47

wrong in the city like what we had when we used to go CBD gun and smash our neighbors away with that we get a group

1:05:53

of people together thinking and we can make a clear witness that this is not

1:05:58

where Christ came and this is what Christ will have us to do. I think that you all the answer to the problem that

1:06:05

we have. Thank you sir. Thank you sir.

1:06:12

I think that you have done an admiral job and I agree. I was thinking the same

1:06:17

thing. But one of the things that I thought about was those youth that we're talk from the question that came about.

1:06:23

Why can't you start with technology? That way you can get together, get us

1:06:30

together and we start with technology and make it happen. All right. Thank you. Thank you all.

1:06:37

Thank thank this panel for us. Come on. Come on. Show some love. Show some love. Show some love.

1:06:44

A movement just happened here at the Mayfield in this space and place. There is a

1:06:51

mighty movement.

1:07:01

Okay. There was one question. I'm going to ask uh Dolores to come up and and answer this one in regards to um

1:07:09

technology and why we were not able to stream this this evening.

1:07:14

The main reason we weren't able to stream is because the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Planning Committee shares corp

1:07:21

communications with the city of Charlotte and as many of you know tonight is city council meeting. So they

1:07:29

couldn't come. But however, and I'm glad you all jumped up and asked your questions, the entire program was being

1:07:36

recorded and it will be shown on the government channel and we will pass the

1:07:41

information to your various organizations. Those who are not affiliated with an organization, if

1:07:47

you'll just check charmeck.org and put in MLK, we will have a a um message out

1:07:54

to tell you when it's available for you uh your viewing. Thank you.

1:08:00

Let's give our facilitator and the panel another round of applause.

1:08:06

[Applause] Thank you all so very much for taking of

1:08:12

your time to come and bless us this this evening. Debbie and I

1:08:18

do want to take the opportunity to thank the planning committee. You all, this is our fourth annual D9 panel and every

1:08:25

year we try to make it something a little different to bring the essence and lifting up MLK. So you can see

1:08:31

clergy and D9 is part of the essence of who he was. So we thought it was befitting. But if you were on the MLK

1:08:37

panel, um Terry, um Brandon Dolores, all

1:08:43

of the planning committee, please stand. and the PR and the community relations

1:08:50

department staff team. Thank you all so much. We will ask the panelists to

1:08:56

please um stay because there is going to be some professional uh pictures. But thank you all so much for coming and we

1:09:02

look forward to seeing you at these several MLK events throughout the week.

1:09:09

Yes. So I get to close us out cuz we are to church y'all. What y'all doing? Y'all

1:09:14

know better. Y'all know who we are.

1:09:21

I've been asked to close us out and I want to offer this.

1:09:28

As we close tonight, we give thanks for our panelists and for everyone who showed up and especially

1:09:36

our young adults who came out just to test and see what was being said.

1:09:45

And friends, they're watching us. Do our words align with our actions.

1:09:53

But not only are they watching us, God is watching us.

1:09:58

And God has equipped the church to be the hope of the world.

1:10:04

And I love my D9 siblings. And each and every one of us were formed for a

1:10:12

purpose in one of the worst eras of America.

1:10:17

And I constantly remind myself and tonight I'm reminding each and every

1:10:23

one of you, they're not like us. They're not like us because we've been

1:10:29

through so much and yet we are still here. They're not like us because we

1:10:36

understand what trouble and struggle means.

1:10:42

Pastor Martin Neimler, a German pastor

1:10:47

during the Nazi era said this. He realized that he was siding with what

1:10:56

was popular and where everybody was going because if I didn't say anything

1:11:01

then I wouldn't be in trouble. And then he orated this.

1:11:10

First they came for the socialists and I did not speak out because I was not a

1:11:17

socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out

1:11:22

because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews and I did not

1:11:28

speak out because I was not a Jew. And then they came for me,

1:11:35

but there was no one left to speak. And I end on this note.

1:11:44

Dr. King said this, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

1:11:51

And finally, my sorority sister, Dr. Mabel Mlan,

1:11:57

President Emmeritus of Barbara Scotia College, who has gone on to glory, put

1:12:02

pen to paper from a poem in which she learned as a youngster, and I'll offer

1:12:08

this as our closing benediction. They came to my desk with trembling lips. The day's work was done. Dear

1:12:16

teacher, we want a new sheet. They said, "We have spoiled this one."

1:12:22

The teacher took the old and torn and blotted sheet and gave them a brand new one.

1:12:30

All unspotted, clean, fresh, and not torn. Into their sad eyes, the teacher

1:12:37

lovingly smiled. My daughters and my sons,

1:12:43

go and do greater now. They came to the throne with tears in

1:12:49

their eyes and trembling heart. The year's work.

1:12:56

2025 is done. Dear God, we want a new year. We said we

1:13:04

have spoiled this one. So God took the old year

1:13:10

torn and blotted highs and lows, wins and losses and God Godself

1:13:17

created and given has given us an opportunity for a new year.

1:13:23

Now my siblings D9 perspectives

1:13:30

just human beings are in this space. We have an opportunity to make a

1:13:36

difference in our communities. We have an opportunity to live up to the legacies in the letters in which we

1:13:44

wear. We have an opportunity to be more unified than we've ever been in the

1:13:51

history of D9. The time is now. Today's the day.

1:13:58

My siblings, go and do greater now in the name of the

1:14:04

Father, Son, and blessed Holy Spirit. And the people of God said together, "Amen."

1:14:10

Amen. And amen. Give God a hand clap of praise.

1:14:17

Before we leave this place, um I was reminded that we do need to thank our host for this evening, Dr. Weary. Thank

1:14:24

you so much for opening up as you affectionately call the field. We appreciate you. Thank you so much.