It’s been 57 years since Martin Luther King Jr. was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee.
When King was assassinated in 1968, the shock waves were felt on Chicago’s West Side, where protests, looting and fires consumed stretches of Madison Street and Roosevelt Road. Many of these areas have yet to be restored.
To commemorate the minister and civil rights activist, and the impact he had on Chicago’s West Side, local clergy and community members marched about a mile from Divine Tree of Life Missionary Baptist Church to Stone Temple Missionary Baptist Church in North Lawndale – the neighborhood where King lived for eight months in 1966, starting a campaign to improve housing in the area.
The Christian Council on Urban Affairs organized the involvement of elected officials, residents and over 40 local pastors. After the march, more than 100 people gathered for a rally at Stone Temple, where King once preached while fighting inequity in Chicago.
Rev. Paul Jakes of the New Tabernacle of Faith Baptist Church said his family went to watch King preach at the church, and he got to meet King.
“Something happened to me when he shook my hand, and I haven’t been the same,” Jakes said. Jakes experienced a similar feeling hearing of the pastor’s death. “I can remember years ago, when hearing about Dr. King’s assassination, it certainly changed my life.”
Decades after King’s presence in Chicago and his death, last week’s rally celebrated inclusivity and love, while speakers denounced the current presidential administration and how it has eliminated necessary public services and programs.
“This is not time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous, positive action,” Jakes said, quoting King. “And here we are 57 years later, fighting the same fight, dealing with someone who is in the Oval Office who cares less about us, who cares less about Medicaid, who cares less about social security, saving military veterans programs and wraparound programs, and the lives of those who are outside and people who need to be cared for.”
“We have decided, as clergy, that we are not going back,” Jakes added. “This is our hope, this is our faith, that we shall be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together.”
While the Trump administration threatens diversity, equity and inclusion efforts across the country, local officials recognize that there have been advancements against racism, though it certainly still exists.
“If you think there ain’t been no change, you get a book and read history,” said U.S. Rep. Danny Davis.“There are folks now trying to take all of that change away, trying to take us back to prehistoric times in our country … They want to break your spirit, that’s what they’re really trying to do. They’ll cut everything that is good and beneficial for poor folks in this country,” he said, like Medicaid and SNAP benefits.
But there is progress being made.
Davis gave an example from the U.S. Senate, which passed a bill last week to stop tariffs on Canadian goods.
“As a result of the crowds of people who are showing up, there were four Republican senators who voted against Trump yesterday,” Davis said at the rally. The bill will now be voted on in the House of Representatives
Davis also said that, despite Elon Musk spending over $20 million earlier this month to support Republican Brad Schimel in Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race, Democrat-backed Susan Crawford won.
“You don’t always have to have the most money, if you’ve got the most faith, you will have the faith of a mustard seed and say to yonder mountain, move. And the mountain will get out of the way,” Davis said, referencing a Bible passage from the book of Matthew.
“Martin Luther King taught us to believe that all things are possible if you only believe,” Davis added. “He taught us that you might give out, but don’t give up. We’ve come too far.”