Children, adults salute Dr. King's sacrifice

The Commercial Appeal -

By Jody Callahan

Monday, April 5, 2010

Jacob Moore, all of 8 years old, wanted to visit the National Civil Rights Museum on Sunday.

So his parents, Tony and Alice, drove the boy up from Hernando to visit the museum and take part in events marking the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination at the Lorraine Motel on April 4, 1968.

They joined several hundred people who came for the ceremonies, including the changing of the wreath placed on the balcony of Room 306 in memory of the fallen civil rights leader.

Jacob was on a mission.

"This is really big for me," said the youngster, decked out in a tie. "I want to learn about my history. It's about somebody who didn't just change the lives of African-Americans, but white Americans, too."

Jacob likely summed up the reasons why a diverse crowd made the trek to the Downtown museum or gathered at other events around the city to celebrate the life of the man martyred here 42 years ago.

"We're here today to take a moment of reflection," said Barbara Andrews, director of education for the museum. "Each year, the museum honors his life with a program of remembrance."

This year's program included music from a gospel group, a talk from San Diego-based Rabbi Ben Kamin and an Easter egg hunt for the kids.

The event not only attracted people from Greater Memphis but two visitors from almost 5,000 miles away.

Valerie Gorin and Magali Dubey are from Geneva, Switzerland. They were traveling from St. Louis to New Orleans, and stopped to spend a day in Memphis.

Gorin, working toward her doctorate in history, has studied the American civil rights movement, so she made sure to visit the museum.

"I don't want to be (negative) against Elvis Presley, but I think America needs to preserve this history," Gorin said. "It really happened."

Added Dubey: "It is an important part of American history."

Kathy and John Barker brought their 6-year-old daughter, Sophie, so she could begin to understand the civil rights movement and what happened at the Lorraine Motel in 1968.

"Even though the civil rights era was a dark time in our nation's history, she needs to know how things were," Kathy Barker said.

Then she leaned over to her daughter, testing her recall of what she'd seen Sunday:

"Who was (King) trying to help?"

"Everybody," Sophie answered.

-- Jody Callahan: 529-6531

Sort Articles By

Children, adults salute Dr. King's sacrifice

Events mark assassination of rights leader 42 years ago