The Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara will present its 14th annual observance of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday holiday in a two-hour virtual program that will include the reading of winning entries in the 2021 student Essay and Poetry Competition (see winners names below).
The event will be live-streamed 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Jan. 18 on www.mlksb.org and on the committee’s Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/MLKCommitteeSB.
Due to restrictions on public gatherings this year, the committee created a virtual program with ceremonial and civic presentations as well as inspirational messages from members of the community. Featured speakers are Anna Everett and Rev. Richard A. Lawrence.
Everett, an emeritus professor of UCSB, was recently elected to the Santa Barbara City College Board of Trustees and also serves on the Santa Barbara County Commission for Women. She holds leadership positions in a number of organizations advocating for marginalized groups.
Lawrence, of San Diego, is a retired United Methodist clergyman whose ministry is committed to social justice. He was active in the civil rights movement and knew Dr. King personally.
In 1965, Lawrence took an interracial group of students from Chicago to participate in the Selma to Montgomery march in Alabama. Later when Dr. King came to Chicago, Rev. Lawrence helped him organize an anti-discrimination demonstration there.
Lawrence has contributed leadership to dozens of community organizations including: Operation Breadbasket (PUSH), Black United Funds in Chicago and NYC.
The 2021 Virtual Program will include encore music and dance performances from previous years. Featured groups include the combined choirs of B’nai B’rith and Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara, directed by the late Ken Ryals, World Dance for Humanity, Dance Institute of Santa Barbara, Inner Light Gospel Choir and Coastal West Community Choir.
The program will present Over the Years, a series of photo montages portraying Martin Luther King Events from 2008-20.
Each year, Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee of Santa Barbara, in partnership with Santa Barbara’s Anti-Defamation League, sponsors an Essay and Poetry Competition open to students ages 6-18. Submissions are received from students throughout the South Coast. A total of $1,000 in cash scholarships are awarded. The first-place winners read their work as a part of the MLK Day event.
2021 Essay and Poetry Winners are as follows:
Age 6-12 Essays:
First Place: “No More Silence” by Noah Slotnick-Lastrico, 12, La Colina Junior High
Second Place: “What Is Right” by Ashley Hansen, 12, La Colina Junior High
Third Place: “Martin Luther King, Jr.” by Lillian Richardson, 9, Marymount School
Honorable Mention: “Why It Is Important To Speak Up” by James Steel, sixth-grade, Foothill Elementary School
Age 6-12 Poems
First Place: “The Journey to Freedom” by Elena Beckman, 10, Knox School
Second Place: “This Is Us” by Zoe Rogers, 11, Peabody Charter School of Santa Barbara
Third Place — tie:
“When Happiness Goes Down” by Sam Kasting, 7, Roosevelt Elementary School
“Say Their Names” by Jonah Archer, 5th Grade, Foothill Elementary School
Age 13-18 Essays:
First Place: “How Should One’s Morals Be Defined?” by Kamea Boucher, 12th-grade, Carpinteria High School
Second Place: “The Importance of Speaking Up for Your Ideals” by Carolina Peace, 13, Marymount School
Third Place: “What Can Make You A Better Person?” by Hannia Hernandez, 12th-grade, Carpinteria High School
Age 13-18 Poems:
First Place: “Betrayal, Silence” by Kundai Chikowero, 12th-grade, Dos Pueblos High
Second Place: “Solidarity” by Sarah Dent, 10th-grade, Dos Pueblos High
Third Place: “Our Voices Are Heard” by Miles Souza, 17, Carpinteria High
Honorable Mentions:
“I Am What I Am” by Fatima Lopez, 17, San Marcos High
“Martin Luther King Was An Amazing Man” by Ember Reiter, 13, Marymount School
“Rise Up” by Ravi Pandya, 13, eighth-grade, Marymount School