New Britain to Celebrate Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Several New Britain community events are planned online for the upcoming 2021 celebration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is on Monday, January 18, 2021.

The day of celebration begins at 11:00am, as the Anna Warmsley Temple #1073 hosts its Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Breakfast at the at the Pride of Connecticut Lodge #1437.

The breakfast is from 11:00am to 2:00pm. It will be held at the Lodge, at 24 Elm Street, but will be take out-only. For $10, the breakfast includes fish, grits, sausage, eggs, bacon and coffee. Orders may be placed via text or email at [email protected].

The city Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities will host the annual city Celebration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in a pre-recorded event, including the reading of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech by members of the New Britain Youth Leadership Group as well as remarks by Mayor Erin Stewart, Reverend Gervais Barger of Peace Missionary Ministries and members of the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities. Fire Chief Raul Ortiz will be the keynote speaker. The event will play at 11:00am on Monday on the city’s Facebook page and on Nutmeg TV, channels 5 and 1070 on Xfinity and 6060 on Frontier.

Jessica Angelo-Julien, Chair of the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities said, “What would Dr. King think? What would he say about the current state of events? We will never know. I know what I am thinking. It does not matter what your political affiliation is, respect the process always.”

Community leader Veronica T. DeLandro, founder of VTD Consulting Group, will be the Guest Speaker at the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, hosted by the Mary McLeod Bethune Club and New Britain Black Ministerial Alliance.

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration event will be streaming on the Facebook page of Spottswood AME Zion Church, where Reverend Samuel C. Blanks is Pastor. The event is to be at 3:30pm on Monday.

“Everyone is welcome,” event organizers say.

At 7:00pm on Monday, the Diaspora Multicultural Society will host an event, “Words from the Past: Hope for the Future.”

The Society invites people to, “Join us as we celebrate the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. while we reflect on the future.”

The event will be online Monday at 7:00pm. The Society invites people to register at bit.ly/DiasporaRevKing2021.

People in New Britain have long remembered on honored the life and work of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and continuing work of the civil rights movement, in events held each year on Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and again in remembrance of the date of his assassination in April.