THIS IS LET'S TALK CINCY, PRESENTED BY WESTERN AND SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP. PUT OUR FINANCIAL STRENGTH BEHIND YOU. HELLO EVERYONE. I'M COURTIS FULLER AND WELCOME TO LET'S TALK CINCY. TODAY WE ARE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE MLK COALITION AND THE UPCOMING KING HOLIDAY. AND WITH ME, THE PRESIDENT OF THE ORGANIZATION, RAPHAEL PROPHET. ALSO, BERTHA DAVIS AND LOUISE LAWARRE. FIRST OF ALL, IT'S GOOD TO SEE ALL OF YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THIS IS THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY FOR THE MLK COALITION HERE IN CINCINNATI. AND PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW ONE OF THE OLDEST GROUPS IN THE COUNTRY THAT REALLY STARTED CELEBRATING THE KING HOLIDAY. FIRST OF ALL, RAPHAEL, JUST TALK ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION AND HOW IT'S MADE UP, WHO'S PART OF IT AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. RIGHT. SO, COURTIS, AS YOU SAID, 50TH YEAR, THE MLK, MLK COALITION COALITION HAS BEEN HAVING A COMMEMORATIVE MARCH IN A PROGRAM, AND THE COALITION IS MADE UP OF VOLUNTEERS. WE'RE ALL VOLUNTEERS. WE COME FROM ALL SWABS AND WALKS OF LIFE. AND, YOU KNOW, WE JUST WANT TO PUT ON A GOOD, GOOD PROGRAM, HAVE A VERY SACRED MARCH TO HONOR KING. THE COALITION IS JUST THAT'S THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HERE FOR. YEAH. LOUISE, I WAS SAYING THAT YOU HAVE PROBABLY BEEN IN THE COALITION LONGER THAN OUR TWO OTHER GUESTS. TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE COALITION FOR ME. WELL, SO THIS IS THE 50TH YEAR WE HAVE GATHERED. AND IN THE EARLY 70S NOW, I'VE ONLY BEEN PART OF THE COALITION SINCE ABOUT 2001. BUT IN THE IN THE EARLY 70S AND MAYBE BEFORE PEOPLE WERE FOLKS FROM THE YWCA, FOLKS FROM THE CINCINNATI HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION, AND FROM ALL OVER WERE WORKING BOTH TO HONOR DOCTOR KING ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF HIS BIRTH, AND ALSO TO GET THAT THE OHIO STATE HOLIDAY PASSED. AND SO THEY WERE MARCHING, AND THEY WERE LEGISLATING. AND SENATOR BOWEN, SENATOR WILLIAM MALLORY, ONE OF THE LUKENS, AND I FORGET WHICH ONE WAS IN IN OFFICE AT THE TIME, AND SOME TEAMSTERS, THERE WERE LOTS OF FOLKS WHO WERE WORKING TO PROMOTE THIS STATE HOLIDAY AND THE ENERGY FOR IT, AS I UNDERSTAND, REALLY CAME FROM CINCINNATI. BUT IT WAS A STATEWIDE EFFORT. AND THEN IT WAS PASSED IN SEPTEMBER OF 1975. AND SO JANUARY OF 1976 WOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST ANNUAL MARCH. AND SO NOW WE HAVE THE 50TH ANNUAL MARCH. PEOPLE HAVE, YOU KNOW, THE PROGRAM HAS CHANGED. IT'S BEEN DIFFERENT LOCATIONS. WE'VE MET SOME CHALLENGES. WE HAD A PANDEMIC AND WE HAD TO DO A PARADE OR A CAR DRIVE INSTEAD OF. BUT ALONG THE WAY, YOU KNOW, THE MLK CHORALE HAS BEEN PART OF IT SINCE 71, 91. SO THAT'S, YOU KNOW, MORE THAN 30 YEARS THAT THE CHORALE HAS BEEN SINGING. WE'VE HAD TRULY AMAZING PEOPLE ON OUR STAGE, YOU KNOW, DELIVERING THEIR, YOU KNOW, A KEYNOTE ADDRESS, INCLUDING REVEREND SHUTTLESWORTH. YEAH, HE'S ONE OF THE FIRST WHO CAME, CAME TO MIND. I REMEMBER THAT YEAR IN PARTICULAR BECAUSE HE WAS ACTUALLY HEADED TO ANOTHER A SPEECH OUT OF TOWN, AND HE GAVE THE SPEECH AT MUSIC HALL AND THEN HEADED TO THE AIRPORT TO GO SOMEPLACE ELSE, PROBABLY, PROBABLY BIRMINGHAM. BUT I'M NOT I'M NOT CERTAIN OF THAT, FOR SURE. BUT IT'S ALMOST HARD TO BELIEVE THAT WE ARE NOW 40 YEARS REMOVED FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE KING HOLIDAY NATIONALLY. OF COURSE, RONALD REAGAN SIGNED IT INTO LAW, AND THEN IN THE MID 80S AND THEN 1986, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, WAS THE FIRST YEAR OF THE NATIONAL CELEBRATION. IT TOOK INTO THE 1990S, LATE INTO THE 1990S, UNTIL ALL OF THE STATES ACTUALLY CELEBRATED THE KING HOLIDAY AS A NATIONAL HOLIDAY. ALBERTHA HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE COALITION? COURTIS THANKS FOR ASKING. I, I JOINED, I GUESS IT'S BEEN ABOUT A FEW YEARS AGO NOW. WHEN I RETIRED, I WAS RECRUITED BY THE PRESIDENT, RAPHAEL, SO HE PUT ME BACK TO WORK IMMEDIATELY. BUT I HAD ALWAYS PRIOR TO THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE MARCH WITH MY FAMILY. SO IT WAS A TRADITION FOR US. AND IT'S ALSO VERY IMPORTANT TO ME BECAUSE MY FATHER, DOCTOR ARTHUR HILSON SENIOR, WHO HAS SINCE PASSED, BUT HE WAS VERY INSTRUMENTAL IN HAVING THE DAY RECOGNIZED BY THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. SO THIS IS ALSO MY WAY TO HONOR HIM AND HIS LEGACY. AND IT WASN'T UNTIL RECENTLY THAT I ACTUALLY STARTED GOING INSIDE FOR THE PROGRAM. BEFORE I BEFORE I JOINED THE COALITION. BUT AS LOUISE HAD SHARED, IT'S JUST A GREAT TIME TO GET TOGETHER WITH PEOPLE WHO HAVE ONE SINGULAR FOCUS. RIGHT? AND THAT IS TO CONTINUE TO KEEP THE DREAM AND THE WORK OF DOCTOR KING ALIVE. AND IT'S I HATE TO SOUND CLICHÉ, BUT MORE IMPORTANT NOW THAN EVER, JUST TO SHOW UP AS A BELOVED COMMUNITY, TO BE AROUND PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT WALKS, YOU KNOW, ALL THE GREATER CINCINNATI AREA. SO SOME FOLKS FROM INDIANA AND KENTUCKY, IN ADDITION TO OUR GREAT CITY HERE, JUST COMING TOGETHER, HOLDING SIGNS, REMEMBERING THE LEGACY OF DOCTOR KING AND THEN THE ABILITY TO GO INSIDE MUSIC HALL JUST TO CONTINUE THAT AND RECOMMIT OURSELVES. REALLY, IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO RECOMMIT OURSELVES AS A COLLECTIVE TO THE WORK OF DOCTOR KING. AND THIS YEAR, IT FALLS ON INAUGURATION DAY. AND I KNOW THERE WAS CONCERN WHETHER IT SHOULD BE HELD THAT DAY OR NOT. AND WE'RE GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE LOGISTICS OF THAT DAY. THERE ARE A LOT OF OTHER PROGRAMS TAKING PLACE ON THE KING HOLIDAY. AND THAT WEEKEND LEADING UP TO IT AS, AS YOU KNOW, SO WE'RE GOING TO TAKE A BREAK AND THEN COME BACK BACK IN A MOMENT. WELCOME BACK, EVERYONE. WELCOME BACK, EVERYONE. WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE UPCOMING KING HOLIDAY, WHICH IS JANUARY 20TH. MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH. ALWAYS THE THIRD MONDAY OF JANUARY 3RD. MEMBERS HERE FROM THE MLK COALITION HERE IN CINCINNATI THAT IS NOW CELEBRATING ITS 50TH ANNIVERSARY. I HAVE BEEN A PART OF IT FOR SEVERAL YEARS, AND I LOOK FORWARD. I LOOK FORWARD TO IT EACH AND EVERY YEAR. I'VE ONLY MISSED ONE YEAR. THAT WAS LAST YEAR. I GUESS I MISSED 2023, BUT LET'S TALK ABOUT THE LOGISTICS OF THE PROGRAM, BECAUSE THE MARCH ACTUALLY STARTS AT THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD FREEDOM CENTER, RIGHT? RIGHT. AND SO WOULD YOU LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THAT IF THAT'S OKAY? SURE, SURE. SO AT 10:30 A.M. AT THE UNDERGROUND FREEDOM CENTER IS WHERE WE'LL START WITH AN INTERDENOMINATIONAL PRAYER. GET FOLKS READY TO GO. THOSE WHO ARE UNABLE TO MAKE THE MARCH. THE METRO IS PROVIDING A ROSA PARKS BUS SO THEY CAN GET ON THE BUS. WE'LL HAVE SOME HOT CHOCOLATE. FOLKS, WE ENCOURAGE YOU MAKE SOME SIGNS REFLECTIVE OF DOCTOR KING AND COME WITH YOUR FAMILY, YOUR CHURCH, YOUR COMMUNITY. GET TOGETHER, HUDDLE, CLOSE, STAY WARM, AND THEN WE'LL MARCH RIGHT ON TO WASHINGTON PARK, WHICH IS WHERE WE'LL THEN ONCE IN WASHINGTON PARK, WE'LL HAVE A FEW REMARKS AND MAYBE A FEW SURPRISES, JUST BRIEFLY, BECAUSE WE KNOW FOLKS ARE STANDING OUT IN THE COLD, BUT WE WILL YOUR HEARTS WILL BE WARM, AND WE'LL TAKE YOU. AND THEN AFTER AT 12, RIGHT AFTER THE MARCH, WE SHOULD GET TO WASHINGTON PARK RIGHT AROUND 1130. LAST YEAR IT WAS REALLY COLD, SO THEY WERE MOVING FAST. I THINK THEY GOT THERE AND PROBABLY RECORD TIME. BUT AFTER THAT, IF YOU GO INTO MUSIC HALL, WHAT YOU'LL BE GREETED WITH, THERE'LL BE VARIOUS TABLES. THE LIBRARY WILL BE THERE. SOME REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE LOCAL HOSPITALS. SO THINGS THAT ARE REALLY IMPORTANT TO OUR COMMUNITY TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT YOUR HEALTH. WE WILL HAVE A TABLE THERE. THE COALITION. AND SO YOU'LL YOU'LL BE GREETED THERE WITH THAT. YOU'LL PROBABLY HEAR SOME DRUMS AND MUSIC FROM BABA CHARLES AND THE SAMBA BAND GOING ON ON THE INSIDE. AND WE'LL GET STARTED AT NOON ON THE INSIDE WITH THE WITH THE PROGRAM. SO IT IS OPEN FREE, OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES ON THE PROGRAM. WE HAVE OUR KEYNOTE SPEAKER, DOCTOR HASAN KWAME JEFFRIES, WHO'S A PROFESSOR OF HISTORY, ILLUSTRIOUS PROFESSOR THERE AT OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY. WE HAVE SOME NEW PERFORMERS THIS YEAR. REALLY EXCITED TO HAVE THE BOOTSY COLLINS FOUNDATION. THEY'RE SUPERHEROES PROGRAM, SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE SPECIAL FOR THE KIDS AND ALL OF THE CHILDREN PRESENT WILL BE ABLE TO BE INVOLVED. AND THEN WE'LL ALSO HAVE SOME OF THEM UP ON STAGE. SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT. WE'LL HAVE SOME STEPPERS. AND AS LOUISE MENTIONED, THE MLK CHORALE, I'M EXCITED. I KNOW THEY HAVE BEEN IN REHEARSALS, AND ONE OF THE THINGS I'M EXCITED TO HEAR THEM SING IS TOTAL PLAYS, TOTAL PRAISE, GOSPEL, CLASSIC. IF YOU CAN IMAGINE. AND THEIR SIZES, THEY'VE PROBABLY DOUBLED IN SIZE AT LEAST. SO IT'S JUST GOING TO BE A REALLY, REALLY GOOD TIME TO REFLECT ON, TO CELEBRATE, CELEBRATE THE PROGRESS MADE, BUT ALSO TO RENEW AND DO THE WORK THAT'S AHEAD OF US. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. IF YOU'RE WONDERING WHY WE START AT THE NATIONAL UNDERGROUND RAILROAD, FREEDOM CENTER IS BECAUSE THERE IS A BREAKFAST THAT MORNING AT THE FREEDOM CENTER. AND OF COURSE, THERE WILL BE INFORMATION GIVEN OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS ABOUT THAT, WHICH IS SEPARATE FROM THE COALITION. HOWEVER, YOU GUYS HAVE PARTNERED OVER THE YEARS TO TRY TO COORDINATE THE EFFORTS OF THAT MORNING. AND SO WE WILL START DOWN THERE AT THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD FREEDOM CENTER RIGHT ABOUT 8:00 OR SO. WE'LL HAVE THE PROGRAM. IT ENDS RIGHT BEFORE THE MARCH BEGINS OUTSIDE THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD FREEDOM CENTER. AND THEN YOU PUT ON YOUR WALKING SHOES, AND IT'S ALWAYS A LOT OF FUN. THE MARCH ITSELF IS ALWAYS, ALWAYS HAS ALWAYS IMPRESSED ME BECAUSE, AS YOU MENTIONED, PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE AREA COME TOGETHER FOR THIS ONE MOMENT. AND I THINK FULLY UNDERSTAND THE PURPOSE OF MARCHING. YES, IT'S SYMBOLIC. OF COURSE IT IS. BUT IT'S NECESSARY TO SHOW THAT SOLIDARITY. I ASKED BERTHA HOW WHAT MADE HER GET INVOLVED, AND I'LL ASK THE TWO OF YOU AS WELL. LOUISE. WHAT? WHAT MADE YOU SAY, I'M GOING TO GET INVOLVED IN THIS ORGANIZATION? WELL, I'D BEEN WORKING IN ANDERSON TOWNSHIP IN MY COMMUNITY TO PROMOTE TO PROMOTE DIVERSITY, UNDERSTANDING AND INCLUSION FOR SEVERAL YEARS. AND BUT ANDERSON'S NOT A VERY DIVERSE COMMUNITY. AND SO THERE WAS THAT CALL IN ME AND IN US TO BE PART OF SOMETHING THAT WAS BIGGER AND NOT DIRECTLY JUST SHOWING UP TO SOLVE A PROBLEM OR TO ADDRESS A MOMENT, A CRISIS KIND OF THING, BUT JUST TO BE PART OF THE ENERGY THAT DOCTOR KING CALLED US TO BRING TO THIS MOMENT FOR JUSTICE, FOR EQUALITY, FOR PEACE. SO AND THAT WAS IN IT WAS RIGHT AFTER THE STUDY CIRCLES THAT THE HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION DID, FOLLOWING THE TIMOTHY THOMAS MURDER AND THE CIVIL UNREST. SO IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME. AND A LONG TIME FIREFIGHTER, AFTER YOU STEP AWAY FROM THAT, INSTEAD OF GOING TO THE BEACH AND ENJOYING RETIREMENT, YOU SAID, I'M GOING TO GET INVOLVED HERE. YOU HAD ALWAYS BEEN A PART OF THE MARCH ITSELF, BUT NEVER A PART DIRECTLY OF THE COALITION. WHAT MADE. YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT. AND COURTIS AND IT'S A SYMBOLIC IN TERMS OF OUR THEME, A JUBILEE, A JUBILEE FOR THE BELOVED COMMUNITY. MLK, BELOVED COMMUNITY. AND I THINK THAT THE TIME JUST CALLS FOR IT. RIGHT? IF YOU IF YOU THINK ABOUT EVERYBODY WANTS TO THINK ABOUT KING IN THESE CLICHES. RIGHT. BUT THERE'S A RADICAL PART OF KING THAT TALKS ABOUT CREATING THE BELOVED COMMUNITY, A BOOK THAT YOU ACTUALLY REFERRED ME TO, STRENGTH TO LOVE, WHERE IT TALKS ABOUT YOU HAVE TO HAVE A TOUGH MIND, THE MIND OF A SERPENT, BUT THE HEART OF A DOVE IN THESE TIMES CALL, FOR WE HAVE SOME SERIOUS ISSUES THAT WE NEED TO GET AT, AND I THINK THE COALITION IS A GOOD WAY OF PROJECTING OR BRINGING THOSE ISSUES TO THE FOREFRONT, AND IT'S GOING TO TAKE A TOUGH MIND. IT'S GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE THE HEART AND THE SOFTNESS OF A DOVE, BUT IT'S GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE THE TOUGHNESS OF A SERPENT. AND SO THAT'S WHAT I GOT INVOLVED IN TO TRY TO HELP PROMOTE THESE CAUSES THAT ARE, DEAR BROTHER, THE REVEREND DOCTOR MARTIN LUTHER KING STOOD FOR, AND HE LOOKED FOR AND DIED FOR. AND I THINK THAT WE ALL NEED TO HAVE A MUCH MORE TOUGH MIND. BUT THE HEART OF A DOVE STRENGTH OF LOVE, I THINK, IS THE BOOK THAT YOU REFERRED ME TO. YEAH, IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITES. IT HAS. IT SITS ON MY DESK AT HOME NOW, AND I'VE HAD IT FOR FOR MANY, MANY YEARS. ALL RIGHT. WE'RE GOING TO TAKE A BREAK AND THEN COME BACK AND TALK MORE ABOUT THE COALITION. THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY AND HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED BACK IN A MOMENT. WELCOME BACK, EVERYONE. YOU KNOW, YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE BOOK STRENGTH TO LOVE. AND I WAS THINKING, YOU KNOW, HERE IT IS, 2024. AND I REMEMBER AS PROBABLY ALL OF YOU DO, VIVIDLY, THE NIGHT DOCTOR KING WAS ASSASSINATED. IT WAS A THURSDAY, ACTUALLY. I WAS ONLY 11 YEARS OLD, AND I REMEMBER THE ANNOUNCEMENT COMING OVER THE SCREEN AND IMMEDIATELY GOING TO MY MY MOTHER AND SAYING, THEY SAID, DOCTOR KING WAS KILLED. AND AND SHORTLY THEREAFTER, IT JUST SEEMED LIKE THINGS ERUPTED. I WAS I GREW UP IN PITTSBURGH, AS MOST FOLKS KNOW, AND EVERYTHING JUST ERUPTED. I MEAN, AND THAT HAPPENED IN PITTSBURGH, DETROIT, HERE IN CINCINNATI, ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. THE NATIONAL GUARD. IMAGINE AS A KID SEEING THE NATIONAL GUARD LINE UP IN FRONT OF YOUR HOME, I SAY ALL OF THAT BECAUSE WE DO WONDER SOMETIMES HOW HOW FAR WE'VE COME AND HOW MUCH FURTHER WE HAVE TO GO. AND THAT'S WHY THE COALITION IS SO IMPORTANT. PEOPLE COULD GET INVOLVED. THIS IS A YEAR ROUND EFFORT, AND YOU DO READING SESSIONS AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO, SO BERTHA, TALK ABOUT HOW PEOPLE CAN GET INVOLVED LIKE YOU DID. YEAH, SURE. SO A COUPLE OF WAYS. ONE FROM A, YOU KNOW, THE THE MARCH AND THE PROGRAM STANDPOINT SHOW UP, SHOW UP TO SHOW THE REST OF THE WORLD, AS LOUISE HAD REFERRED, YOU KNOW, CINCINNATI REALLY SORT OF PUSHED THE OHIO EFFORT TO MAKE KING A RECOGNIZED HOLIDAY. AND WE WANT TO CONTINUE BEING AT THE FRONT AND LETTING THE WORLD KNOW THAT WE STAND TOGETHER AS IT RELATES TO THE WORK THAT WE HAVE TO DO, WHICH IS TO KEEP THE LEGACY AND DREAM OF DOCTOR KING ALIVE. OUR COALITION MEETINGS ARE ON THE THIRD TUESDAY OF EACH MONTH, AND SO WE WELCOME EVERYONE. WE HAVE SOME WHO JOIN VIRTUALLY, OTHERS WHO JOIN IN PERSON TO TALK ABOUT AND PREPARE FOR. AS YOU MENTIONED, THERE'S A LOT OF WORK THAT HAPPENS BEHIND THE SCENES TO PREPARE FOR THE HOLIDAY. AS WE MARK THAT. BUT WE ALSO DID A PROGRAM COMMEMORATING THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY MARCH ON WASHINGTON. WE ALSO HAVE A SERIES OF BOOKS AND THINGS THAT WE RECOMMEND. AND AS A COALITION, WE SORT OF HAVE OUR OWN LITTLE MINI BOOK CLUB. WE COMMITTED TO REALLY UNDERSTANDING DOCTOR KING AND THE WORK THAT THAT HE DID BEYOND SORT OF WHAT'S POPULAR. RIGHT? WELL, POPULAR IN THE SENSE THAT VERY WELL KNOWN, BUT REALLY GETTING TO KNOW THE RADICAL KING AS WELL AND THINGS THAT WE CAN BE DOING. AND YOU MENTIONED COURTIS THE MARCH. IT IS SYMBOLIC AND COMMEMORATIVE, BUT IT ALSO IS A KEY STRATEGY THAT WE STILL USE EFFECTIVELY TODAY. RIGHT? SO IT WORKED FOR KING. IT WORKS FOR CHANGE. AND SO WE ARE HOLDING FAST TO THAT AND CONTINUING THAT. AND I CONSIDER IT AN HIGH A HIGH HONOR TO DO IT WITH THESE PEOPLE HERE WHO HAVE A HEART FOR THIS WORK. I MENTIONED MY EXPERIENCE THE DAY KING WAS ASSASSINATED. DO YOU REMEMBER THAT DAY I WAS 19 AND I WAS IN SCHOOL AND IT WAS EVENING CLASSES, SO I WASN'T SITTING THERE AT THE, YOU KNOW, WATCHING THE TV AS IT UNFOLDED. IT WASN'T UNTIL THE NEXT DAY, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WHAT HAD REALLY HAPPENED. AND MY WORLD WAS A PRETTY INSULAR, WHITE WORLD AT THAT TIME. SO I DIDN'T HAVE A, YOU KNOW, I COULD ONLY PROCESS IN, YOU KNOW, IN MY OWN FAMILY AND COMMUNITY. YEAH. WHAT ABOUT YOU? YEAH. WHAT I REMEMBER. I GUESS ABOUT SEVEN YEARS OLD. THERE WAS JUST CHAOS. I REMEMBER THE MOMENT IT HAPPENED. I REMEMBER MY MOM CRYING. RIGHT. AND THE SIGNIFICANCE OF IT. RIGHT. WE KNEW. I KNEW AS A YOUNG PERSON. I KNEW DOCTOR KING WAS THIS GREAT LEADER. BUT I FELT HOW IMPORTANT HE WAS THROUGH MY MOM AND SEEING THE TEARS. RIGHT. BUT THEN IN THE AFTERMATH, AS YOU SAID, AND I AT THAT TIME LIVING IN THE WEST END, AND THEN THERE WAS A LOT OF UNREST THAT TIME DIDN'T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHY PEOPLE WERE SO ANGRY. BUT BUT I JUST REMEMBER IT WAS CHAOS, RIGHT? AND THEN OVER THE YEARS, YOU CAME TO UNDERSTAND THE SIGNIFICANCE. AND THAT'S WHY WE ARE TODAY. RIGHT? AND IT'S FUNNY, THIS, THIS JUBILEE, THE CELEBRATION IS ACTUALLY IT'S A CONNECTION TO PITTSBURGH IN 1960, DOCTOR KING SPOKE IN PITTSBURGH AT THIS JUBILEE. AND THAT'S WHERE OUR TITLE, OUR THEME CAME FROM. RIGHT. AND SO THERE'S A CONNECTION THAT CINCINNATI AND PITTSBURGH WITH KING, YOU KNOW, WHO HE VISITED BECAUSE THERE WAS A LOT OF THEY WERE FORBIDDEN FROM THE SELF, A LOT OF SOUTHERN CITIES. AND SO THEY CAME TO THE NORTH TO ADVOCATE. AND SO THERE WAS A CONNECTION WITH THE MIDWEST. BUT HOLD THAT THOUGHT. I'M GOING TO TAKE A BREAK, AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THAT, THAT CONNECTION, THE CINCINNATI CONNECTION TO KING, A VERY POWERFUL ONE. WE'LL BE BACK IN A MOMENT. I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO THIS I ALWAYS LOOK FORWARD TO THIS TIME OF THE YEAR WHEN WE CELEBRATE THE KING HOLIDAY. BUT BEFORE WE WENT TO THE BREAK, AND JUST BRIEFLY, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THIS CONNECTION, KING CAME TO CINCINNATI QUITE OFTEN. LV BOOTH THAT'S RIGHT. OBVIOUSLY WAS A DEAR FRIEND. AND THEN REVEREND SHUTTLESWORTH CAME HERE, YOU KNOW, AND SO MANY. THE LIST IS VERY LONG. BUT THAT CONNECTION IS IS STRONG AND PEOPLE SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT. THAT'S PART OF THE REASON WHY CINCINNATI IS ON THE FOREFRONT OF THIS. YEAH. THAT'S RIGHT. AND YOU ALREADY MENTIONED SOME OF THE SOME OF THE LEADERS IN OUR COMMUNITY AT THAT TIME. AND CINCINNATI, WAS IT WAS A BASTION IN TERMS OF FOR CIVIL RIGHTS. AND WE'RE STILL REALLY STRUGGLING WITH SOME OF THOSE SAME ISSUES KING TALKED ABOUT IN TERMS OF THE, THE, THE HOUSING ISSUES WE'RE DEALING WITH THAT TODAY. SO THERE'S THERE'S A SIGNIFICANT CONNECTION WITH MLK AND CINCINNATI. YEAH. LET'S TALK ABOUT THE DAY AGAIN. OF COURSE. IT'S MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH. IT STARTS EARLY. THIS WILL BE THE THE BREAKFAST DOWN AT THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD FREEDOM CENTER. THE MARCH OF COURSE, THIS GREAT PROGRAM AT MUSIC HALL THAT WE HAVE EVERY YEAR. AND THEN THERE ARE PROGRAMS, THE CHURCH OF THE RESURRECTION HAS A GREAT PROGRAM LATER IN THE AFTERNOON. SO I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING FOLKS AT ALL OF THOSE. BUT AGAIN, PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW THAT THEY CAN COME OUT. THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES IF IT'S COLD, WHICH IT PROBABLY WILL BE, THERE WILL BE WAYS THAT YOU CAN STILL PARTICIPATE AND STAY SAFE, EVEN IN THE COLD. TALK AGAIN ABOUT THAT. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. SO AS I MENTIONED, THE ROSA PARKS BUS BY METRO WILL BE AVAILABLE IF YOU WANT TO JOIN AND WATCH THE MARCHERS. BUT THEN ALSO IT'S ALWAYS WARM INSIDE MUSIC HALL WHEN WE GET IN THERE. SO THAT PROGRAM IN MUSIC HALL BEGINS AT 12 NOON SO YOU CAN JOIN US THERE. WE DO HAVE ALL OF THE INFORMATION AND DETAILS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE AT MLK COALITION.ORG. SO LOTS OF GREAT INFORMATION THERE FOR FOLKS AND SOME THINGS UP FOR US. LOUISE, THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS 50TH ANNIVERSARY. YOU KNOW, THAT NOTION OF JUBILEE, THE NOTION OF 50 YEARS IS IS BIBLICAL. AND AND THAT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT TO DOCTOR KING. THAT'S WHY HE WAS IN PITTSBURGH IN 1960 FOR WHAT THEY CALLED JUBILEE JUSTICE. AND APPARENTLY THAT MARCH WAS BUILDING TOWARDS THE 1960 3RD MARCH IN WASHINGTON. SO, YOU KNOW, THE NOTION OF JUBILEE, THE NOTION OF 50, THE TIME WHEN ALL DEBTS WILL BE FORGIVEN, YOU KNOW, IT MEANS WE'VE GOT OUR WORK TO DO TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN. BUT IT'S A REMINDER. YEAH. IT IS. WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IT WILL BE HERE BEFORE WE KNOW IT. JANUARY 20TH. COME ON OUT AND JOIN US. IT'S ALWAYS A FUN DAY AND A VERY IMPORTANT DAY. WELL, THAT DOES IT FOR THIS EDITION OF LET'S TALK CINCY. I'M COURTIS FULLER. I'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME FOR ANOTHER LET'S TALK CINCY. HAVE A NICE DAY.