MLK Community Breakfast Will Zoom To Belmont On Jan. 17

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Photo: Rahsaan Hall is the keynote speaker at the 2022 annual MLK Community Breakfast which will once again be a virtual event

Belmont’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Breakfast, historically intended to bring the Belmont and Boston communities together in a program of unity around Dr. King’s legacy, will once again take place via Zoom on Monday, Jan. 17, 2022 at 9 a.m.

This year’s keynote speaker, Rahsaan Hall, director of the Racial Justice Program at American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts, has chosen this year’s theme to be “The Arc and the Pendulum: The Long Journey toward Racial Justice.”

In this role, Rahsaan helps develop the ACLU’s integrated advocacy approach to addressing issues of racial justice. Through legislative advocacy, litigation and community engagement, the program works on issues that impact communities of color and historically disenfranchised communities. Rahsaan also manages the ACLU’s What a Difference a DA makes to educate residents about the power and influence of distract attorneys.

Adam Dash, Belmont’s Select Board chair, looks forward to the annual Belmont MLK event. While he
misses the in-person breakfast where people can mingle and meet, he looks forward to the perspective
each speaker brings to the presently virtual event.

“We can’t talk about race too much” and how the speaker forces local candidates for office to confront issues. Dash recalls how “blown away” he was by the MLK breakfast where former METCO students returned to give their accounts of what a difference the METCO program had made in their lives.

The Belmont Human Rights Commission, in conjunction with Belmont Against Racism and Belmont Media Center, will be the lead sponsor and organizer. The Commission is dedicated to fighting discrimination in all forms; increasing awareness of issues regarding diversity and discrimination in our community; and responding to allegations of discrimination.

Advanced registration can be found at Eventbrite at: https://bit.ly/MLKBelmont2022 For more information about this event, please contact the Commission at belmont.hrc@gmail.com or call 617-993-2795.

Boston Globe’s Renee Graham To Speak Virtual At Belmont’s Annual MLK Breakfast

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Photo: Martin Luther King Breakfast

Belmont’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Breakfast will be held virtually on Monday, Jan. 18, at 9 a.m. through the Belmont Media Center.

The featured speaker, Renee Graham, Boston Globe associate editor and Op Ed columnist, will address the question: Rejecting ‘Normal’, Embracing Radical Change: Can we build a democracy that finally lives up to its ideals?

Graham reflects articulately and powerfully in her column on many contemporary issues – from voter suppression, to institutional racism, to LGBTQ issues, to politics, and to other social justice issues.

The event is co-sponsored by the Belmont Human Rights Commission, Belmont Against Racism, and Belmont Media Center.

To register, go to Eventbrite at: bit.ly/Register-2021MLK  For more information, contact Belmont Human Rights Commission or by email to Belmont.hrc@gmail.com or call 617-993-2795.

The event is free of charge but donations to the Belmont METCO Support Fund are greatly appreciated. Contributions may be made by cash or check to Belmont Against Racism, re:METCO Support Fund, PO Box 649, Belmont 02478 or on line at belmontagainstracism.org at the “donate” button.

Immigration Highlights Keynote Address At Belmont’s Annual MLK Breakfast, Jan. 20

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Photo: Ragini Shah, founder and director of Suffolk University’s Immigration Clinic will be the keynote speaker at the annual MLK Community Breakfast.

The bond linking civil rights leader Martin Luther King and the struggle immigrants experience in today’s adverse environment will be the focus of this year’s keynote address at the 26th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Community Breakfast.

The event sponsored by the town’s Human Rights Commission and Belmont Against Racism will be held Jan. 20, 2020 from 8:45 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Belmont High School cafeteria.

Ragini Shah, clinical professor of law at Suffolk Law School and founder of Suffolk’s Immigration Clinic will talk on “Uplifting the Human Personality: Martin Luther King and Immigrants’ Rights Today.”

Music will fill out the program

There will be pastries, fruit, juice and coffee as well as supervised activity for children under 12.

Tickets: $5 for individuals; $10 per family. Pay at door or with eventbrite (tinyurl.com/BelmontMLK2020)

All proceeds and donations will be go to support the Belmont School’s METCO Support Fund which funds late transportation for METCO high school students who participate in after-school activities at Belmont High School and across all Belmont schools for programs that bring our Boston and Belmont students together.

Donations to the METCO Support Fund can be made by cash or check to: Belmont Against Racism, P.O. Box 649, Belmont, MA 02478

For info on the community breakfast, contact the Human Rights Commission at 617-993-2795 or belmont.hrc@gmail.com.