‘Honoring the Dream’ Residents observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day with program on unity

FAIRFIELD - A few dozen people gathered in the Fairfield Public Library Sunday, Jan. 19, to reflect on the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and his goal of racial equality.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day was Monday, Jan. 20, and many school districts in the area honored the occasion by canceling classes. Others have used it as an opportunity to perform community service. Sunday's program at the Fairfield library was titled 'Honoring the Dream,” a reference to King's famous 'I Have a Dream” speech that he delivered in 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

The afternoon consisted of live music, presentations, public discussions and a viewing of the film 'An American Story: Race Amity and the Other Tradition.” The film documents the many examples of cooperation between different cultures and races in North America. The film recounts the history of a colonial village in New England where whites and blacks lived as equals, where they rented rooms from each other, where blacks could take whites to court, and where courts were willing to leave white orphans in the hands of black parents.

The film touches on how colonists came to understand the importance of allying with Native Americans. For example, in the French and Indian War (1754-1763), the British realize that about two-thirds of the forces fighting against them are not the French but native tribes allied with the French.

The documentary talks about the activities of abolitionist Frederick Douglass, and his friendship with Irishman Daniel O'Connell, nicknamed 'The Emancipator” for the forceful way he fought for the rights of Catholics in Ireland, and to end slavery in America.

Lastly, the film highlights the friendships made between the farmworkers in California led by Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta and American community organizer Fred Ross.

Fairfield resident Gretchen Jentz organized the event. She said she wanted to find a way to honor Martin Luther King Jr. in Fairfield, because she feels strongly about keeping his legacy alive.

'Ten years ago, I organized an event like this when I lived on the Standing Rock reservation [in the Dakotas]. When I learned that not everyone knew about Martin Luther King, I was like, ‘What? Well then we have to organize a celebration,'” Jentz said.

Jentz is a member of the Baha'i faith, which stresses the unity of all people on earth. The Baha'is of Fairfield sponsored the event.

'Being raised Baha'i, and being part of race-unity gatherings, has been a big part of my life,” Jentz said. 'My parents raised me on different reservations and in China, so I had a multicultural upbringing. I enjoy bringing people together for social justice. It's a passion of mine.”

Jentz said Fairfield is blessed to have so many great musical artists, and she asked several to participate in Sunday's event. During the event itself, Paul Morehead drew a sketch of Martin Luther King Jr. He said he combined a few photographs he'd seen of King into one single image. Though he drew the sketch with pencil, that's not his main medium. He's principally an animator and cartoonist.

'I like to do any kind of visual storytelling,” Morehead said.

Morehead said he attended the event because he believes strongly in the cause of race amity. He enjoyed learning the bit of history revealed in the documentary film shown that day.

Jahwaan Bingham led a discussion on unity following the film.

'I want people to understand that it all comes down to the human condition,” Bingham said. 'Any cell in our body can be healthy, or any cell can be the cancer cell. Which one takes over depends on which one you choose. I knew we were going to talk a lot about the past, but I wanted to focus on asking questions.”

Jentz suggested that she'd like to turn the event into not just an annual occurrence but a monthly happening. Bingham said he would be interested in participating in a monthly discussion, too.

Albert Stimson, a member of the audience, said he attended Sunday's event because he felt inspired.

'But inspiration without action doesn't mean anything,” he quickly added. 'I found myself wondering what our next steps are.”

Stimson said the first steps he plans to take is to gather more information about unity by attending more meetings like the one Sunday, and to spread the word among his friends.