 Good morning. All right. Well, we'd like to get we'd like to get started this morning And I know some of you are still looking for seats and I I hate to say it. I just don't think they're any more available So if you'd be willing to to stand in the lobby and listen you could take it in and and then join the March at the end It's good for us to be together. Isn't it? We need to be together. My name is Rob and I'd like to welcome you To the Martin Luther King Day event here in Davis. I think it's a 23rd year. We've been doing this and we're blessed We're blessed to have all of you present with us It's an honor for us as a city to be able to host people from Davis and beyond this event this year's theme or this year's title is Justice everywhere It's right on your program Justice everywhere speaking up for justice in a climate of intolerance One of my favorite quotes by dr. Martin Luther King, which is a quote that expresses a hope That maybe is not always seen but a hope is not always seen Dr. King said the arc of the moral universe is long But it bends towards justice. I Take that as a matter of faith Singer songwriter Jackson Brown wrote in his song the word justice Does the word justice mean anything to you? He wrote I'm waiting for the time to come When the word will be real for everyone and not just a word but a thing that can be done Justice must be one Justice does the word justice mean anything to you if you're here today to celebrate the life Of a great man of justice then I assume the answer is yes It means something to me so perhaps a question should be What does it mean to you? What Does the word justice mean For you for us in the city of Davis in the county of Yolo in the state of California in the United States What does the word justice mean for us today? Now you received a note card when you came in Right a note card and a pencil We're gonna bring up the lights and what I'd like you to do is I'd like you to take a few minutes before we get rolling To write on that card. What does justice mean for you? It might be a word It might be a short sentence. It might be something more. What does the word justice mean to you? and then what we're gonna do At the end there's gonna be two baskets like this sitting out there with a little sign It says the word justice means and and I'm gonna ask you to drop your cards into them Now you may want to write it now or you may want to wait to be inspired by what you're gonna hear in the next few minutes From our speakers and our singers But before you leave, please write what does the word justice mean to you on that card? And then here's what I'm gonna commit to doing with those cards. I'm gonna take those cards I'm gonna have a little party. I'm gonna sort them all out. I'm gonna derive and understand what the themes are and then I promise we're gonna share We're gonna share your words of the meaning of justice with this entire community So that what we testify to today About what it is that we want to achieve in seeking justice can be shared with the entire community who's not here today Will you do it? All right take a few minutes really We're just gonna take a few minutes you want to turn to someone next to you and say what does justice mean to you? That'd be fine, but eventually I'd like you to get it on a note card and drop it in the basket when you leave you got two minutes right now The word justice What does it mean to you? You have one minute. I'm waiting for a time to come When the word will be real for everyone and not just a word, but a thing that can be done Justice must be won What does the word justice mean to you? So thank you for participating in that. Please before you leave Finish it and drop it in the basket and we'll offer a gift of our understanding of justice to our entire community in the coming weeks I'd like to introduce now Gloria partita Gloria and Just saying that name should elicit applause in this place Gloria partita She doesn't like when I do that. I have deep affection for Gloria Because she's she's a role model for me She's faced adversity and instead of turning inward Instead of nurturing a hurt that she was well worth Nurturing would have been well worth nurturing She took the hurt and she turned it into actions of justice in our community Maybe that's the definition of justice a person who will take the hurt That's right a person who will take their hurt and turn it into good Gloria will continue to make a positive impact on Davis as the founder of the Davis Phoenix Coalition advocating for those with disabilities Advocating for those in the LGBTQA community She's a member of the Human Relations Commission of the city of Davis and this year is the recipient of the Brinley award for her Work in social justice in our community Gloria is going to be the emcee today. She's standing in the breach Welcome her and thank her for being here with us Okay, I'm kind of short if people haven't noticed so Hopefully you can hear me Thank you for coming I it warms my heart to see so many people here showing up for justice We are very crowded. So if there are seats that are open, can you please raise your hand and Let people know that there are there still spaces I can still see seats up here So you're in the back and you're looking for a seat let people know, please Okay, so Which is not very accurate right now we've had a number of illnesses and So please roll with us. We're professionals here. We're going to get through this Okay, so I'd like to thank our elected officials. He just heard one of them, which is our mayor Rob Davis is here and Also Cecilia Aguilar Curry is here. I'm not sure there. She is way in the back. All right It's really important for our Our community leaders to show up in support it It promotes not only their personal values But also the values of the communities they represent so it's always good to see them in support All right, so first up we had Alita Simon who unfortunately is ill But I'd like to welcome Erica Ballinger who is stepping in in her place and this is actually Alita's mom and they're a very musical family and so she will Kick us off. Good morning My 15-year-old daughter Alita was scheduled today. Unfortunately, she's she's sick She had Last spring she had started writing a song that she was going to share today And it was around the time when it seemed that probably every week we were turning on the news and seeing that An unarmed young black man was being killed by the police and she wrote a very moving Song in response to that And unfortunately, I won't have something quite as profound But I am here so that we ensure we start the celebration off with song and this is The original piece that I wrote a few years back That was inspired by a book I read Written by Bell Hooks feminist cultural critic scholar And the book was called all about love in which She in an effort to explore different aspects of love not simply romantic love, but looking looking at a deep level culturally on that topic and And that's that song is what that that I'm sorry that book is what inspired me with this this piece I That's some revolution Thank you. Thank you, Erica So as Rob mentioned, this is a program that is put on by the city of Davis Human Relations Commission the Human Relations Commission is All volunteer and there are a number of HRC members here that I would like to thank If you can stand up and we can say thank you to you The function of the Human Relations Commission is to promote mutual respect understanding and tolerance among all persons and to build a community where diverse people are valued by all All right, so we are super excited about our next group up here I'd like to introduce the children of the parents of American of African-American American children of Davis PAACD is a social group that brings together parents caregivers and kids for friendship support and fun They welcome working and at home parents and caregivers to join To build lasting friendships create a supportive community grow together with our children and celebrate our African-American culture and heritage Families from all neighboring communities are welcome today. The children will read I have a dream and what will go down in history as the greatest Demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation five score years ago a great American in whose symbolic shadow We stand today sign the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree became as a great beacon of a Great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in flames of withering and justice It came a joyous day break to end the long night of their captivity But 100 years later the Negro is still not free 100 years later the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the change of discrimination 100 years later the life of the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of the vast ocean of material prosperity 100 years later the life of the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself in exile in his own land So we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition in a sense We've come to our nation's capital to cash a check when the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the decoration of independence they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall here This note was the promise that all men yes black men as well as white men would be guaranteed the Unalliable rights of life liberty in the pursuit of happiness It's obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note and so far as our citizens of color are concerned Instead of honoring the sacred obligation America has given the Negro people a bad check a check which has come back marked Unsufficient funds, but we refuse to believe that the Bank of Justice is bankrupt We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation And so we have come to cash this check a check that will give us upon the demand of riches of freedom and the security of justice We have also come to this how You've also come to this house bought to remind America the fears urgency of now This is no time to engage the luxury of calling off or taking the Trincusing drug of terrorism now is the time to make real promises of decimation now is the time to rise from the dark and dishoyled from this Valley of segregation of to the selling with path of Racial justice now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice To the solid rock of brotherhood now is the time to make justice in reality for all of God's will It'd be facile for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment this swarming time soldiering Summer is Negro's lignite discount discount 10 will not pass Until there's an Interrogation autumn of freedom and equal 1963 is not an end but a beginning and those who hope that the Negro needed to blow steam will now be Content will have a rude awakening of donation returns to minors as usual. There will be neither rest or trincus in America Until the nigga granted his seizure ship Citizenship rights That wouldn't worlds are about will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emergence But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warring threshold which leads into the palace of Justice in the process of gaining our rightful place. We must not be guilty of our wrongful deeds Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom By drinking the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plains of Dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative Protests to degenerate into physical violence again and again We must rise to majestic heights of leading physical force with soul force the marvelous new militancy Which has engulfed in the Negro company community must not lead us to a distress of all white people For many of our white brothers as evidenced by their presence here today have come to realize that their disney is tied up with our disney and They have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom We cannot walk alone and as we walk You must make the pledge that shall all that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back Are those who are asking the devotees of Civil rights, when will you be satisfied? We will never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police Brutality we can never be satisfied as long as our bodies heavy with the fightage of Tribal cannot gain lodging in the models of the highways and The hotels of the cities we can we can Cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one We can never be satisfied as long as our children are Striped of their cell hood the and rob of their dignity by Sign stating for whites only what's only We cannot be satisfied as long as Negro isn't this is to be cannot vote and the Legal in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote Some of you have come here of great trials and tribulations Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution And staggered by the winds of police brutality you have been the veterans of creative suffering Continue to work with the fate that unearned suffering is redemptive go back to Mississippi go back to Alabama Go back to South Carolina go back to Georgia go back to Louisiana Go back to the slums and get ghettos of our northern city knowing that this is somehow this situation Can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair today my friends So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow I still have a dream is a dream deeply rooted within the American dream I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men women and children are created equal I have a dream that one day on the Red Hills of Georgia Sons of former slaves and sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood I have a dream that one day even in the state of Mississippi a state sweltering with the heat of injustice Sweltering with the heat of impression will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation Where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character Today have a dream today I've a dream today in Alabama With its vicious racist with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification One day right right down there in Alabama little black boys and little black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys And little white girls as sisters and brothers I have a dream today that one day every valley shall be exalted in every hail and mountain shall be made low To our place will be planned and a crooked pace will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be relieved and all flesh shall see together This is our hope This this is the faith that I'll go back to south with with this faith We will be able to hear out of the mention of this prayer I still have hope with this faith We'll be able to transform the jingle this coach or a nation to a beautiful symphony of brotherhood With this faith we'll be able to work together to pray together to struggle together But a jail together just to stand up for freedom to go in knowing that we'll be free one day and this will be the day And this would be the day and this will be the day This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning my country tis three land of liberty They all sing then my father let him the pilgrims pride from every mountain silent freedom ring And if America's to be a great nation this must become true So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York Let freedom ring from the heightening Allegheny's of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California But not only that let freedom ring from the stone mountain of Georgia Let freedom ring from the lookout mountain of Tennessee Well, freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi from every mountainside Let freedom ring and when this happens and when we allow freedom to ring when we let it ring from every village And every hamlet from every state and every city We will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children black men and white men Jews and Gentiles Protestants and Catholics will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual Wow, I Really Don't envy the person who's coming on after them I'd also like to give a shout out to John Saylor a county supervisor who is out there somewhere Not sure Thank you for joining us Next I'd like to welcome Jessa Ray growing thunder Jessa Ray growing thunder comes from the Fort Peck Essie Bonnie Sue. I'm sorry Of Northeastern Montana. She's a third generation traditional artist and is famously known for her beadwork and clover She has won countless awards with her art and has shown her work in numerous museums like this is like the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian where her work is in the permanent collections Jessa Ray is currently pursuing her doctorate in Native American Studies from the University of California Davis Where her research focuses on oral history and American Indian art? What a tough act to follow I just want to acknowledge the young people that were up on stage. Can we give them another round of applause? Acknowledge them because they are the next leaders of our communities and of our country And I thank them for getting up on stage and having the courage to use their voice in that way It's really truly inspiring to me I'm a talky happy a bit to watch today. She can a do the home. We are in Machiappi Manich to walk here country why he turned out. Oh hippie Tom a quarter knock on a quarter day to talk. Oh, yeah. Hey, Hannah long ago There was only Ian Before all the creation we see today Ian in our language refers to the rocks and the stones So the the pieces of gravel that you see on the ground The rocks and the stones that you see scattered all throughout this world They are only remnants of what Ian used to say about the rocks and the stones And the rocks and the stones that you see scattered all throughout this world They're only remnants of what you used to be long ago Ian was whole and he was powerful And Ian lived in a world of darkness with only himself until one day Ian decided to create He created a sphere And one half of that sphere would be the same as the other half of that sphere would be Macha would be land The other half would be Mani would be water. And so Ian lived with his creation for some time But they still lived in a world of darkness and in our traditions we must always balance things So to balance this world of darkness Ian created daylight He created daytime so that they could have nighttime So Ian and his creation lived like this for some time until one day Macha land Asked Ian to create more She said yeah, I am naked. I asked that you create things upon me to clothe me and Ian heard Macha and he said If I do this for you Macha You must promise to always nourish the life that I create upon you To always look after it to always protect it And Macha said of course I will always do this So soon Ian created mountains He created the grass the trees the plants the animals and With each new creation all the others gathered to greet it and welcome it to this new world and Towards the end of this creation Ian created woman Wham He created woman to mimic Macha Woman would have the ability to create life To nourish life and because we must always balance this world Ian soon created man and man would be mimicked To the universe because the universe protects Macha Protects grandmother earth so Ian did this and created all that we see here and With each new creation Ian gave a little bit of himself He used his own blood to create every single thing we have here today and soon he was so drained That he shattered all across the world all across Macha and So these little stones these little pieces of rock that you see everywhere you step Are only remnants of what Macha or what Ian used to be They serve as reminders of our position and our roles together I want to thank each and every one of you for being here today. I Want to thank all The young people for being in this room all the mothers and the fathers The aunties and the uncles and the grandparents. I want to thank you all for being here today Now more than ever we need these types of spaces to talk about unity and solidarity and justice Equality these are important things to gather and talk about I come from the Dakota Nakota peoples I am a Cinnabon and I'm sure we have all heard about what has happened in Standing Rock since April 1st of last year And it's been a remarkable journey since then I've had the opportunity to be there to be there with my relations and It was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen to Walk into Ocete Shakawee camp and Hear old people and young people speak my traditional language to watch people from all over the world gather together to feed one another To look after one another to create relations to build families and communities What is happening out there is a complete and utter Change As a young person, I've always had a dream I've always had a dream that we live in a world where we're all equal Where every single person's rights and happiness matter and what has happened since April 1st of last year is The right movement towards that the fight isn't over We still have thousands of relations out there The pipeline may have been halted Temporarily But the fight's not over. We still have a lot of work to do and even though we're not physically there with all of my relations We're here. We're in this room right now with one another Because we believe in the street What I've seen out there and what I see in front of me right now reassures that So as a young person in this generation the generation that is going to change all future generations I thank you. I thank you. I thank you. I thank you for all that you're doing But I ask That we keep in mind It's not over. We still have so much to do and we all have a part in that Our future is bright our young people up here just demonstrated that So I ask that we continue to do these these spaces these conversations I said we continue to work with each other To make sure that those young people have that future with that being said I Still can't thank you enough for this right now You have each other. Oh shit, but I'm here with a good heart. I thank you Okay Thank you. Just a ray So please join me in welcoming Mark asks who will be singing lift every voice and swing low Mark has worked in broadcast and performing technology since high school where he was a DJ host and producer of a weekly radio show He then began working for the Long Center Theater in Elliott Hall of Music After moving to California. He combined his experiences and created Davis youth media at Harper Junior High School Currently, he is an educator for Davis Joint Unified School District. You might also see his band the dirt feeling Playing at festivals on the weekend or find his paintings at local galleries. So welcome Mark lift Every voice and sing Till earth and have a party Let our rejoicing Rock skies Let us march on loud as the sing a song Full of the faith that the dark past has taught us Sing full of the hope that the present has Facing the Rising Sun let us march on Till victory, what did I see? Common fall to carry. Let me get a gospel clap. Well, that's certainly woke us up. All right Next on our program is Mandel and unfortunately Mandel was ill today and we're hoping that he is feeling better I Now have the privilege of introducing our keynote speaker Garth Lewis Garth Lewis is a grateful husband of 20 plus years and proud father of two daughters He is the former Sacramento State University co-coordinator of the Matsuyama University and CSU Sacramento language and cultural exchange program over a span of 22 years he has been a K-12 classroom teacher and school side administrator in South Sacramento a school site in the district administrator in woodland and now Serve since the assistant superintendent of instructional services for the Yolo County Office of Education Where he oversees programs serving incarcerated and expelled youth in Yolo County Support school districts in various initiatives and partners with agencies to work on equity Issues throughout the county. He is also a founding member of African-American students into higher education a logo Organization illuminating a counter narrative narrative to the crisis of American African-American student achievement in schools By focusing on three core areas college and career planning Leadership development and empowerment and hope and healing Thank You Garth. All right, we do come from a call and response tradition. So one more time. Good morning, everyone just to clarify For those of us who weren't aware lift every voice and seeing is the black national anthem which is why we stand up out of respect and Join in lifting our voices in that in that piece I'd like to thank the city of Davis For taking time to remember and honor dr. Martin Luther King a True American hero as part of your community's commitment to social justice and to equity and I also want to say that We know that dr. King fought for the rights of many people regardless of race and and religion and we know that folks are under attack in these days and In solidarity with our Muslim brothers and sisters out there. I'd like to greet you by saying assalamu alaikum My family and I are honored to be here today with you and Remembrance of such a great man Who made the ultimate sacrifice for truth and justice? Today's theme Justice everywhere speaking for justice speaking up for justice in a climate of intolerance is a very appropriate call to action For when justice and freedom are taken for granted. They are threatened When taken for granted these basic human rights are vulnerable to be abused by those with power with impunity in the words of dr. King Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere And you don't have to look too far to understand that we are living in a time of intolerance You can just check your social media feeds To find plenty of people talking past one another Disrespecting one another and highlighting differences in a way that divides rather than unites Let me go on record also this morning to say that Congressman John Lewis deserves the respect of every American in this country period Today we are here To celebrate a man who unjustifiably was threatened violently attacked and Eventually assassinated for his genius and his god-given ability and calling to liberate those who had been oppressed Marginalized and forced to live as second-class citizens under the threat of violence And while there are other great Americans we come together to celebrate dr. King specifically for the ideals and Principles for which he fought and the sacrifice which he made His dream that we would not be judged by our so-called race But by the content of our character still provides us with the standard to which we should all aspire I Can remember the day when I myself became really cognizant of race and its implications for my life I was in middle school and was walking home to my grandmother's house with my friend Gustavo after school and As we passed a house where an older white man was out in his front yard He looked up at us with what we both immediately interpreted as hatred in his eyes And I do not know what possessed us to do what we did next other than foolishness childhood foolishness But we decided to run down the street We're one of one of our white classmates was standing and Tell him to pretend like we were beating him up all the while Looking down the street to see whether this man was paying attention or not Well, he was And he jumped out of he jumped into his truck and chased us down He pulled up and cornered us With his window down and yelled You effing nigger and spic I Should get out of my truck and beat your heads in and by the time he got his last word out We had taken off running again Fortunately, he didn't come after us We must have run a half a mile before we stopped and and started walking again But that day I understood that in this life not only would I be accountable for my actions I was also going to have to deal with other how others perceive me and while this experience pales in comparison to what those who Dr. King marched with Marienced it makes me appreciate his courage to stare down hate even more in relation to today's theme There are three attributes from dr. King's life and work that I'd like to draw on as compelling reasons for us to speak up for justice one his profound his profound empathy for others Number two education for a purpose and number three hope for the future Dr. King's profound empathy is evidenced by his selfless acts of love that he showed in the face of adversity I Was not alive when dr. King was assassinated however our lives are forever entwined For had it not been for his empathy That caused him to look into the future and understand the impact of an unjust system and the impact it would have on generations to come and work toward disrupting That challenge that system I'm not sure that I would be standing here before you today Had it not been for his willingness to stand with dignity and courage in the face of loathing and senseless attacks on behalf of others I Believe we would not be witnessing the close of the second term of America's first African-American president My wife and I shed tears While hugging our daughters on the night of President Obama's election And we will always treasure being able to hear his first Memorial Day's address at Arlington Cemetery Along with the girls along with our girls and students from Lee Middle School that were there with us on that day I'm grateful for the fact that dr. King answered the call to step into a role that required fortitude and courage And at the same time as a naturally curious educator I'm always trying to understand the why behind the things that I observe Why did he show that level of empathy? Why would a man who could have chosen an easier path decide to lay down the privilege? He could have enjoyed as an extraordinary orator and highly educated Baptist members minister with a promising future if he had decided to pay attention to only what was going on in his church Why would a young husband and father Make the choice to use his very body as the tool to bring about change in a time in which a black life meant very little in mainstream America in My estimation dr. King was compelled by at least two powerful forces one his faith in God and to the context in which he lived Regarding his faith He understood that the word of God was to be lived not just heard in the words of Jesus Christ Greater love have no man than this that a man would lay down his life for his friend Dr. King was fully aware of the danger the work he committed himself to present it Yet he willingly offered his body and direct action Against the oppressive system of racism and segregation and although nearly Although in the early years of his work. He articulated this commitment Eight years and to his 13-year journey as a civil rights leader He was still trying to help those who did not understand his commitment to empathy as an action word and Help them comprehend why he would choose to bear such a heavy burden on behalf of others In an excerpt from his piece letter from Birmingham jail dr. King argued Perhaps it is easy that for those who have never felt the stinking darts of segregation to say wait But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim When you see the vast majority of your 20 million Negro brothers smothered in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society When you suddenly find your tongue twisted and Speak stammering as you seek to explain to your six-year-old daughter Why she can't go to the public amusement park that had just been advertised on television and See the tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that fun town is cut is closed to color children and See ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form over her little mental sky When your mother and wife are not given the respected title misses and when you have forever Fighting a degenerative sense of nobodiness, then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait Dr. King's words clearly articulated his why His argument to his critics was compelling and unarguably true His empathy radar had been activated and he could not ignore it and even though the context of the day was one of constant physical and mental and spiritual danger For the American citizen of African descent Simply because of the color of his skin through his faith in God and living out his convictions Dr. King turned a mess into a message a Message that is still relevant in our country to this day a Message that calls all of us to speak up for marginalized communities and calls for us to speak up for justice As I was preparing for this morning, I tried to do so without fully wearing my teacher hat But I just couldn't help myself. So I've got some homework for you. I Actually felt a little bit better once I saw the mayor giving you some homework as well Here are two things that we can do to build empathy in our communities and we see we have seen evidence of this today here in Davis Having conversations with folks who don't look like us who don't believe like us on things that are not just on the surface And I think sometimes in this day and age of social media. We Think that we know one another simply because we're following each other's Facebook page or Twitter feed But do your co-workers know what really fuels your fire. Do they know that you stand for justice? So having those conversations We also would like I'd also like to encourage you or invite you to visit empathy calm as a way to build a library and of experiences for inspirational films and and books and Also get a chance to see the life of others through that perspective And in this way, it's like the six-foot Tall kindergarten teacher who shows humility of heart and body by kneeling down to consider the world from a student's perspective Acknowledging the limitations of a single point of view from a person from the person with the most power in the room on the value of a purposeful education Obviously highly intelligent and well educated himself When a student at Morehouse College dr. King wrote a paper on the importance of education In which he argued that intelligence plus character that is the goal of true education The complete education gives one not only power of concentration, but worthy objectives upon which to concentrate and Dr. King's life serves as a model of his words in action He took his diploma his bachelor's degrees his PhD and Bundled him up all bundled up all those hours of study and training and released Release them into a mo movement that changed this country and world forever a Free public education is not only the mate one of the major cornerstones of our democracy But in my estimation it is likely the best means of bringing dr. Dreams Dr. King's dream to fruition Yet the reality of this work is not and will not be easy In 2017 a gap for school achievement and opportunity still persists along the color line Outcomes for youth in the aggregate are still predictable back based upon the color of one skin and zip code One of my favorite educators dr. Ron Edmonds is quoted as saying we can whenever and wherever we choose Successfully teach all children whose schooling is of interest to us We already know more than we need to know to do that Whether or not we do it must finally depend upon how we feel about the fact that we haven't so far What do we know about what works about education? We know that preschool matters and this is especially important for children of color and those living in poverty Who can sometimes who can oftentimes arrive to school 14 months behind their more affluent peers when it comes to kindergarten readiness measures Yet according to a title a report title do the math schools versus prisons in 2014 the state of California spent 12 times as much on prisoners as we did on preschoolers Let's work to move that funding upstream. This is a worthy objective of an educated mind What else do we know about education? We know that literacy matters in 2015 on the national assessment of Educational progress fourth grade black and Latino students qualified and students qualifying for free and reduced lunch in California had an average score 30 points below their white and more affluent counterparts respectively Their performance gap was not significantly different than that in 1998 17 years earlier The fact is that these fourth graders who do not meet that reading benchmark today are more than likely Destined to become our lowest paid citizens of tomorrow We have to work together to change that outcome and disrupt generational poverty Let's work together for literacy for all that's another worthy objective of an educated mind The third thing we know is that equity and culturally responsive schools make a difference for children we know that it makes a difference for their outcomes and Changes to changes the general patterns of school achievement for youth of color and those that are living in poverty Contrary to what some have believed Prior to the rhetoric that we were subject to during the most recent election and since then We do not live in a colorblind nor bias-free society And our children definitely do not attend color colorblind and bias-free schools Just this month the Atlantic magazine reported on the importance of of race discussions in the classroom and While teachers overwhelmingly agree that that's a topic that should be discussed in schools They felt woefully unprepared to do so and strongly reject discussing racial violence We know that the material conditions of our youth's lives including issues around race Need to be reflected in the learning experience and that will help all children to thrive I'll share a quick example of where we see evidence of this right here in Yolo County on February 4th of 2016 Partners from all across the county came together the whole the first annual Yolo County African-American student leadership conference And at this conference it was on a Saturday We had over 90 African-American European-American and Latino students show up and They experienced traditions That were lost when Africans were brought here as enslaved peoples They experienced a blessing by elders and being draped by African mudcloths as they were as they were entered to the room They were provided with materials that were inspiring to them to help them to survive and thrive African drumming hip-hop music spoken word poetry and speakers spoke to the mirrored material conditions of their lives and Engaged them throughout the day most importantly The youth learned about the contributions that African-Americans and Africans have made to this country and this world That are oftentimes left out of today's school curriculum and Throughout the day the youth and parents that were there thanked us for putting together such such an impactful event The purpose of this event was to counter the the the narrative that is oftentimes Spouted by those within and without the educational system regarding apathy for our that our youth may have I Believe that based upon the fact that we have so many kids that are coming back this next year To this next year's event that it's not that our children are apathetic towards education But it's because it's that the system has not changed enough to be able to engage them And then we have to work on those conditions When the outcomes of children For education are predictable based upon race and income level That's a sure sign that the system needs working on not the children Let's continue to work to create equity-driven and culturally responsive schools and communities Yet another worthy objective for an educated mind And even if you're not an educator we need your partnership in that work Dr. King's message to us on education was that education for education's sake was a brain a bankrupt idea Whereas education for purpose provides hope for a future Which brings me to the final attribute for this morning Hope for a future if I could hold a tune at all I would sing but I can't so I won't I Would sing we shall overcome we shall overcome we shall overcome some day Oh deep in my heart. I do believe we shall overcome some day Dr. King was an amazing beacon of hope and the human capacity to show restraint and discipline and love in the face of a difficult struggle His example in bold and and empowered the African-American community and those who stood with them Empowered them to stand for change on the day that he delivered his I have a dream speech Dr. King was introduced as the moral conscious of our country and in the process Dr. King Focused the light of truth and mercy on the gloomy reality of racism segregation and the oppression of the other In this way his work was a next step in the accomplishments of She-Rose and heroes like Harriet Tubman Dred Scott Nat Turner W. E. B. Du Bois Sojourner truth and Carter G. Woodson These warriors of justice are reminders that historically speaking in the US The amount that a life matters has depended upon the color of one's skin Rather than the content of one's character Yet dr. Dream dr. King's dream insisted that the humanity of black people in this country Be given as much consideration and dignity as anyone else's The fight to make the case that black lives in fact do matter has been going on on these shores for over 400 years Dr. King's work is not done It's in our hands yours and mine And the future of his legacy depends upon not only us taking time to remember him today But it's living out his work on a daily basis His empathy the use of an education for a purpose And hope for a better future Last week President Obama reminded us that our constitution is a great gift Because of the ideals that it communicates Namely that all men are created equal and that they are endowed by the creator with certain unalienable rights And among these life liberty and the pursuit of happiness And at the same time he acknowledged that we still have a long way to go In ensuring that these words are true for all Americans Regardless of race religion ethnicity sexual orientation gender their ability country of origin or any other difference that might be exploited Living in a way that recognizes that our common humanity trumps all that could possibly divide us would go a long way toward building that hopeful future And this morning we invite you to dream For dr. King dreamed He dared to dream Even though he knew That in his lifetime it was unlikely He would see that dream come to fruition So this morning we do invite you to continue that dream continue his work and recognize that his life Causes us or calls us To speak up for justice everywhere This is our time to do our part and to speak up And to use our privilege our knowledge and influence To work towards justice for all in the spirit of dr. Martin Luther King Thank you for having me with you this morning, and I wish you god bless Thank you garth So that homework assignment will be collected here next year We're going to conclude our program today with music played by the ever popular davis freedom singers When they are done everybody is encouraged to participate in a short freedom march Through downtown davis the march will conclude at the east street plaza All right, and here are freedom singers And um, I'd also like to thank each of you for joining us to celebrate diversity Gosh davis you're really looking great. This is the most I've ever seen here Ages Well done We've got to be sure that we can all get up sing really loud. Hey, so don't hesitate to To sing along with us. These are simple songs And they're gonna be repeated over and over except we'll change your word Now and then and we'll let you know what the word is This is this little light of mine Oh This little light of mine I've got to let it shine This little light of mine Oh this little light of mine I'm gonna let it shine. Let it shine. Let it shine. Let it shine Free of fear and hatred Freedom fear and hatred I'm gonna make it go Free of fear and hatred I'm gonna make it go Freedom fear and hatred I'm gonna make it go Every night We're the poor and hungry. We shall overcome the last speaker to sing along. He can sing this song Don't don't so, uh, please if you feel like it stand up and sing with us Oh, we shall overcome We shall overcome We shall be free We shall be free. We shall be free. We shall be free So we shall live in peace We shall live in We shall live We shall one more Song before we do start marching out of the hall behind that'll come right after it We'll start walking out the front and we're gonna march all over davis about four or five blocks So this one It starts off with the the concept of i'm on my way and i won't turn back And john pampering over there. He he's saying that down in Alabama. Yeah Yeah, well John and how are you doing john? Are you well today? So what key is this we're gonna be in you guys? Gee yeah, we were with mr. Lewis Yeah, okay Yeah, we're still with I'm on my way Ask my brother. I'm gonna tell mr. Trump I know the town mr. Trump won't you go with he says no gonna go