Davis community celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day

PHOTO: Speaker Jay King gives a talk about the impact minorities have had on America.

By Mariah Lewellen and Hannah Daum,

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

As the Free Range Singers perform their upbeat winter melody, they urge the crowd to sing along using the words “I see you, you see me.” The choir, in perfect harmony, engages the crowd and brings the Davis community together.

On Jan. 20, at the Varsity Theatre, participants gathered in honor of Martin Luther King Jr., who would have been turning 91. Eight different groups of speakers performed a variety of activities, including reading poems, singing and delivering inspirational speeches. 

Priya McKinney, a sixth grader from Patwin elementary school, shared her experience as a minority in the Davis community throughout her school years.

 “It’s really teaching me how to be a strong person and how to say my opinions. I was bullied in fifth grade and I think it really taught me to just be strong and speak out when other people might be afraid,” McKinney said.

Along with McKinney, there were also other young speakers in the program. The children of the Parents of African American Children, a Davis social group, each took turns giving background on influential people of color over the years.

Speakers Jay King and Doretha Williams-Flournoy also gave impactful speeches on the importance of young people in our communities and the significant roles that they play to change our world for the better. 

“We need more love that transcends differences, like where we can feel each other,” Williams-Flournoy said.