Speaker recounts King's call for living wage
By Phil Anderson
The Capital-Journal, 1/22/08

Despite slippery and chilly conditions outside, about 200 people turned out for the 15th annual community celebration of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday Monday night at First United Methodist Church, 600 S.W. Topeka Blvd.

The Rev. Paul Sherry, of Lakewood, Ohio, issued a call for increasing Kansas' minimum wage during his address.

Jason Hunter / The Capital-Journal

From left, Jack Alexander, Theresa Counts, Pastor Donald A. Baker, and Rev. Bernard Hurd mingle during a soup dinner as part of the fifteenth Community Celebration of the Birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Monday at the First United Methodist Church in Topeka.

KING'S BIRTHDAY

While Monday was the national holiday celebrating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, he was born on Jan. 15, 1929, in Atlanta. The Nobel Prize winner died April 4, 1968, in Memphis.

In an interview prior to the program, Sherry said he would speak about King's "strong, strong commitment — evidenced throughout his entire life and ministry — to work toward a living wage."

Two years before an assassin's bullet cut his life short, King told Congress "working toward a living wage is a crucial civil rights issue," Sherry said.

"He knew a job should keep you out of poverty, not keep you in it," Sherry noted. "He knew a living wage was essential for human decency."

At the time of his death, King was in Memphis to support striking sanitation workers in their quest for "basic human dignity," Sherry said.

In addition to being the former president of the United Church of Christ denomination, Sherry also was the coordinator of Let Justice Roll, an organization composed of more than 100 faith-based labor and business groups that support a living wage for American workers.

Before the program, which featured the Topeka West Singers, about 80 people enjoyed soup and chili in the church's fellowship hall.

Rep. Nancy Boyda, D-Kan., attended the soup supper and in impromptu remarks remembered King as a "great leader" who is still missed nearly 40 years after his death.

"It's not just about missing him or remembering him," Boyda said. "It's about putting his teachings into action."

Andrew Evans, 37, of Topeka, attended the program with family members. He said he has been coming to the annual event for about nine years.

"It's a time we all come together to celebrate Martin Luther King's achievements in life," Evans said. "He has a strong message about nonviolence, equality and spirituality."

The event, a project of the Topeka Center for Peace and Justice, was organized by the Whose Dream Is It? Coalition of community and religious leaders. It marked the final event of the Living the Dream week of events honoring King's legacy.

Phil Anderson can be reached at (785) 295-1195 or phil.anderson@cjonline.com.

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