Transcripts For CSPAN National Action Network Martin Luther King Jr. Day Breakfast 20180115

Greatness and charity for all. The reverend al sharpton from the National Action network held the breakfast this morning. Tom perez and American Federation of teachers president Randi Weingarten were among the speakers. Good morning, everyone. Good morning. May i ask that you take your seats so that we may begin. Again, good morning. I am Jennifer Jones austin, i am a board member for the National Action network, and i run a policy and advocacy organization, antiproperty policy Navigation Organization based in new york city. Every year on mlk day we gather to remember dr. Kings legacy, and to reflect and refocus on the work that we all, we all are doing to keep his dream alive and make it live here in america. In 1991, the National Action network was founded in the spirit and tradition of dr. King. Years, 26ince, 26 years plus, this Civil Rights Organization superbly led by its haser reverend sharpton, been a preeminent leader in the fight for civil rights. Again, i welcome all of you this morning. As we prepare now to break the nights fast. Barkley will come and bless the food, and then we will all watch the lift every voice video. Shall we pray . Gracious father and the creator of the sustainer of all things, we come here this morning on this king day to tell you thank you, to tell you how much we love you, how much we appreciate you, for all you have done for us. We ask lord god are blessings this day, every person we have gathered, for every server that is about to prepare and serve us our breakfast, we pray that you continue to advance this dream in your son jesus christs name, thank god, amen. Breakfast is served. Lift up your voice and ing withearth and heaven ring the harmonies of liberty let our rejoicing rise high as the listening skies ndt it ring sound resou loud as the rolling sea sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us sing a song full of the hope that the president has brought us let us march on till victory is won stony the road we trod bitter the chesaning rod felt in the days, when hope unborn had died we have come over wayave come over the that the tears have watered we have come treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered nowof the gloomy past till we stand at last where the white gleam of our bright star is cast [singing] lest our feet stray from the places our god, where we met thee lest our hearts the drunk with the wine of the world, we forget thee beneath they y hand may we forever stand true to our god true to our native land [applause] it gives me great pleasure to turn the program over to reverend sharpton, and individual who needs no introduction, in this room, in this town, in this nation, or beyond, for his tireless and unrelenting work on behalf of those who have been systemically disenfranchised and marginalized. And for our sake, knows no limitations. I consider myself to be truly fortunate, for i have known reverend sharpton for longer than i can remember. Before i was even born, he was a presence in my family and in my household. As he was meant toward in civil rights mentored in civil rights by my father, who was president of the southern christian Leadership Conferences new york chapter and a comrade of dr. Kings in the movement. Today, nearly 50 years later, i am proud to be mentored by reverend sharpton. It is my joy to present him, our National Network action president National Action Network President , reverend al sharpton. [applause] reverend sharpton good morning. Good morning and welcome on day. Er Martin Luther king jr and as we are taking our seats and eating, the reason that we are moving so uncustomarily on schedule [laughter] we have a lot of people coming in, but i told him just let folk in, because we do three cities on king day and martin has to be obviously all over the place. But let me say this on the good news side, is that i remember kingsrtins mother, dr. Widow, and congressman john conyers and others, were fighting to make this a federal holiday and it was something unthinkableto be and implausible. I said this morning on a show, i remember maybe 36 years ago, james brown, the godfather of soul, brought me to washington. It was the first time i went to the white house. He has supported mr. King and he met with Ronald Reagan. I told james brown, Ronald Reagan will never assign making this a holiday, because ronald called Martin Luther king a but Ronald Reagan, if years later, signed it. And as i called Martin Luther king a rode to the mayflower this morning from the hotel, every federal and state office is closed, honoring the birthday of Martin Luther king. [applause] and you should be honored to be here in the presence of his son, his daughterinlaw, and the only grandchild Martin Luther king has, yolanda is with us this morning. Give her a big hand. [applause] you can tell your grandchildren that you sat with dr. King s granddaughter on king day, 2018. Certainly, we will hear from martin, but the bad news is when offices open tomorrow, they tering some of the worst the policy we have seen in the last 15 years since dr. 50 years since dr. King was killed, which is april of this year. There have been reports about the current president and him calling haiti and african s. O. Ns and el salvador countries. And after three or four days, donald trump saying he did not say it. First of all, i have known donald trump for 35 years. And every time i have met with him, usually it was for protesting him, all of our meetings have been a lot more profane than profound. I have no doubt that he said it. But the issue is not what he said, it is what he is doing. They are not debating the policy that they exclude people from africa and haiti, they are arguing about whether he cussed. If i was walking down the stairs in the ballroom and he pushed me down the stairs, the argument is not whether you comedy n the argument is not whether you called me the nword on the way down, it is that you push me down the stairs. This is what we have to face and what we have to deal with. The good news is that we have learned from dr. King how to deal with people who are not in our interests. One, we do not become like them. And we do not lower our moral standard for therirs. That is why it is our honor today that we are blessed with the presence of the standardbearer of dr. King, the namesake of dr. King. A year ago we marched here in washington. Martin said to me, in the spirit of our father, i must meet and appeal to president trump. Folks, you know, a lot of will not stand will not understand. He said, they will understand my father. We must make the moral appeal even if it goes nowhere, and he did. I. Do not think he will do anything he said, we are not responsible for how they respond, we are responsible for making the appeal. A year later martin was right to make the appeal. I was right that donald trump was not going to do nothing. [laughter] but he has always tried to bring up a better in society, and that is what Martin Luther king was about. And that is what we must be about. Aswe become as bitter and hateful as those that we fight, they have already won. So on king day we are going to stand up to trump without becoming like him. We will not call him names, but we will not allow the policy to go on accounted for. At 1 00 p. M. We will be in harlem today, 4 00 p. M. In times square to march against hate. Every king day morning we pause to salute those that have operated in the spirit of dr. King, before we honor them though we are blessed ticket on schedule with our opening speaker, the keynote speaker for Martin Luther king day breakfast, 2018, the standardbearer, the oldest child and the namesake of Martin Luther king jr. On this, his federal holiday. Among the things he has done is spread peace and global understanding, kept his father and his mothers movement. His greatest honor though it is he is a husband and yolandes daddy. Martin luther king iii. [applause] martin good morning. Good morning. God for theme thank opportunity to be back in washington. On this kingy holiday. That we observe 50 passing,ce the actually the assassination i should say, of Martin Luther king jr. I am going to reflect in a moment, but first i must say thankful to have a very dear friend who has been on the battlefield for a long time. And that we all owe a debt of gratitude to. And that is the reverend al sharpton, president of the National Action network. [applause] you know, it takes a lot of up all the time for those who have no voice. And it is interesting, because leadership certainly keeps coming. And every now and then the lord sends a prophetic leader, who future and the really leads in a way so that that message lives forever. Meause it is interesting to to listen to some of the speeches of my father. Negro, thoserd speeches could have been delivered at any time, even right now. Said, he was, as i killed 50 years ago. So i will reflect this morning, let me say first to all the ministers here today, the elected officials here today, every honorary in advance, congratulations to you. Chairman of the Democratic Party, chairman perez, and most that i amy i must say always, it is only special because she is not always with me and i should say they are not , but i am so fortunate and blessed today to have the best thing that ever happened to me, and that is my wife andrea waters king. [applause] and the second best thing, our renee king. Anda [applause] now you know you are going to leave something out, but attribute it to the head and not the heart, so i apologize if ive overlooked someone that i shouldve stated was here, because actually we are all important. I have just a few remarks, 10 or 12 minutes that i want to read. But as i said, i have to reflect a tiny bit. Remember 10 years ago on april 4, when i was watching television and watching the news and it flashed across the screen and i was sitting in our family room of my brothers and sisters, and it flashed across the screen that Martin Luther king jr. Has just been shocked. Shot. Now, there is no way to be prepared for that, but i remember running back to our moms room, looking for some consolation as to what had happened, what is going on, what did that mean . I remember that trauma existing for a very long time. It took a long time to overcome the fact that dad had been killed. Uncle,n a year later, my my fathers brother was mysteriously drowned. 1974,our years after that my grandmother was gunned down in the Ebenezer Church while playing the lords prayer. Dadinterestingly enough, was killed by a white man in a white racist system, my grandmother was killed by a black man. So i couldve harbored hatred, and really dislike all of you all [laughter] but im thankful for the spirit of love, because it teaches you to dislike the evil act, but still love the individual. My grandfather and my mother and my uncles all talked taught that. And we as a nation have to learn how to forgive. We do not know how to forgive, that is why we are constantly engaging in wars. We have the capacity to destroy everything to destroy anything, maybe everything, but human beings are gods greatest creation, but in conflict we resort to lower animal means. You never see a group of dogs talking about plato or shakespeare, or harriet tubman, htey do not have that ability. You never see cap talking about cats talking about im republican, democrat or independent. You have never seen a group of zebras talking about, i am christian, muslim, i am hindu, i am buddhist, i am jewish, i am atheist they do not have that ability. But gods highest creation, mankind, actually humankind, has the ability to think and reason and when we get ready to resolve a conflict we resort to lower animal means. Im going to kill him. That must change. You know, it only takes a few good women and men to bring about change. I think my father showed us that with his team. And others have shown us that. If there are few places, any, that i would like to make some of this reflection today. Reflection on the dream means we have to understand what the dream is. One way to sibley put it is that all gods children, protestants and catholics, hindus and muslims, women and men, lgbtq, and straight young and old, all of gods children should join as one humanity and to live in a world of freedom and equality for all. Let me say from the onset that those that would argue for National Policy of isolation would do well to remember my father 60 years ago, that we must learn to live as brothers or we may perish together as. As fools. He argued the destiny of one nation is tied to all nations, we can never be totally secure as long as they are insecure. The final analysis, all life is interrelated, no nation or individual is independent. We are interdependent. As he looked across this land, he came to realize the individual of the nation that feels like it can live in isolation has a lot itself to sleep through a revolution. The idea of America First may will have its place, but america can only be first if she lives up to the true meaning of her free. We hold these truths to be self evident, that all women and men are created equal and they are endowed by their creator with on rights of unalienable the pursuit of happiness. The country that can live it in isolation has a flip there a revolution. We are indeed living through a great revolution. As we listen to and we read current news, we find citizens are losing confidence and hope in our democracy, and our economy, more precisely in the institutions that negotiate and mediate our life chances. Now that we have turned the corner to a new decade since the Great Recession of 2008, the wealthy have done well, while millions wait for recovery that seems to never come. Yes, the stock market is at an alltime high, moving higher daily. Unemployment seems to rest at a respectable low, they say, but still too many struggle to put food on the table, to pay bills, and to provide adequate housing, clothing and education for their children. Unemployment may be low, but so are the wages. That barely put a salary for the meaningful living in the hands of women and men. It is one thing to give a token to a handful of workers on the one hand, but altogether another to simultaneously take a whole livelihood away from hundreds on the other, through layoffs, and business closings. Do not get me wrong, i get the logic of the free market, but i also get that the market must work freely for all and not benefit the privileged few. So i am here today because of a prophetic obligation captured in my fathers dream speech, it is an obligation that calls upon all of you, all of humanity, an obligation that compels every citizen, of every race, color, religion, gender and create, it is an obligation captured in the prophetic call for justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like a stream. The challenges us today, he answers the call of the moral obligation, we are here today because the American Dream is decidedly a nightmare for too many citizens. And people have had enough. Let me say it again, the dream has become a nightmare for too Many American citizens. On the left and on the right. And they have had enough. They have had enough of the viciousness that we have seen from the statehouse to the white house. Of theve seen enough dysfunction in the legislative capitals of our country. Of the dysfunction in the legislative capitals of our country. And they want action that responds to the struggles of their daily lives. Millions of marginalized citizens of all races and ethnic backgrounds are demanding that their voices be heard, their faces seen and their needs met. Like many of their fathers and mothers, they refuse to believe that the vault of liberty and prosperity are empty. They still believe in the constitutions promissory note, a contract between them as citizens and their country as the guarantee your of liberty, justice and equality, and they still believe the bank of justice is not bankrupt. The media asked me what i think my father would say about the current state of affairs in our nation and in our world today. I do not know exactly what he would say, but i can tell you what he said about the injustice and moral decay of his time. Let me set the stage, 54 years ago he and a legion of religious, civic, labor leaders marched for jobs and justice. The march was moral because it brought the attention of the world to the injustice of an economy that favored one segment of society and denied dignity and work to its citizens of color. Lifears ago, he lost his to that struggle and he prepared for another march on washington and it would be a Public Statement that the nation was not living up to the true meaning of its creed. That was called the Poor Peoples Campaign. In 1967 he was talking about a living wage and we are still trying to get the minimum wage raised, so that people can have a decent quality of life. March, because they understood that the preamble of the constitution states certain truths that are self evident. Our constitution declares, it is selfevident that all women and men are created equal. That all women and men are endowed with unalienable rights. Let me go back to the women being created equal, because let men,ll you brothers, all you have to get your house in order quick. Women are not playing. And it is tragic that we as a society have mistreated women for so long. It has always been unacceptable, but who wouldve ever thought that just six months ago that this would take a trajectory, this movement, a movement for righteousness, for justice, for fairness, for truth, this may be the year of the woman for real. In georgia, we have two women running for governor in a republican state. Guess what, women are mobilized and organized and one of those women will become the democratic nominee, one is an africanamerican, and one perhaps will become the first woman governor of the state of georgia. We are serious in this nation. [applause] these rights, if they are to become real, and justice must prevail. In equal sharing of society benefits and burdens, advantages and disadvantages, but today the scales of justice lean in favor of the few who hold plenty of benefits and advantages, while many are weighted down with lifes burdens and disadvantages. My father into some of the others marched to redeem the soul of the nation, the march was for values and pride in the constitution, but the nation seems to have abandoned these values when it comes to certain citizens. So if we truly honor his life and work, we must join in his cause for a revolution of values. His call for a revolution of values was also a call for a revolution of the scales of justice. Let me explain that. As he looked over the landscape of our collective lives and he saw the divide between poverty and wealth, and declared, that is not just. He saw thousands of working people displaced from their jobs and reduced incomes as a result of automation, while the profit for these employers remained intact, and said, that is not just. He the held capitalists of the west investing huge sums of money in africa, asia and south america, only to take the profit out with no concern but the social betterment of these countries and is said, that is not just. He witnessed the western hasgance, feeling like it everything to teach others and do nothing to learn from them, and that is not just. He gazed in horror at the ways that we use war, putting our will against the will of others, and in fat ugly insisted, that is not just and emphatically insisted, that is not just. He declared in justice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. I cannot be what i have to be until you are what you ought to be, because our destinies are tied together. All humanity is caught in a network of mutuality, tied in a garment of destiny, certainly whatever affects one directly affects all. Thus we are all responsible to ensure that we live in a fair and just and peaceful society. What does justice look like . Justice is having unfettered access to our rights to participate in the democratic process of a voting, just legislative capitals and statehouses and executives should be looking for every opportunity to help people vote, rather than come up with excuses to prevent some from exercising their rights. Voter suppression must be eulogized. It has to be dead. We have got to make sure that there is no barrier to voting. We should have all my registration. We should have, we should have the ability to register and even have all the i. D. s that we need. I propose a couple years ago, that is why i was meeting with the president elect trump at that time, about taking an i. D. And making sure that barrier no longer existed so that we could not keep people from voting because they do not have an appropriate i. D. This edition was put the picture on the Social Security card, everybody does not have a drivers license, but everybody has a Social Security card, so why not put a picture on it . That issue is no longer in issue. Nation, out of 107 america,es, the united 107 countries voted higher percentages than the United States. There is something wrong with that. Went and women give their lives men and women give their lives so we would have the right to vote, all we have to do is find the way to use it. In november, we could change the complexion of this nation. I am not talking about color, i am talking about the moral complexion by electing senators and congress people, the whole United States congress is up for election and it several senators all we have to do is take that short step into the ballot box and cast our votes. [applause] justice is having representation without taxation. Therefore, washington, dc should have statehood. [applause] [cheers] justice is having equal pay for equal work, justice lifts up women and people of color to enjoy the same wealth as their male and white counterparts. Justice is supposed to be blind, it weighs a criminal and civil case on the basis not of wealth or Sexual Orientation or other characteristics, but on just laws. You know, we have a criminal system but it is not just. Whether you go down to the courthouse in d. C. Were in maryland or any county in our state, you go to that system and all you find a re blacks are blacks, hispanics, latinos and poor whites. Richard pryor captured it effectively, you go down to the courthouse looking for justice and all you find is just humorous,it is it really is not, we are 80 of the jail population into something is wrong with that. It is a twofold scenario, one of those scenarios is, biblically it says if you bring up a child in the way that they should go when they are old, they will not depart from that training. Us are not some of raising our children properly. That is part of the problem, but that is not the bigger problem. The bigger problem is a lack of defense counselors. If you do not have proper representation when you are in court, nine out of 10 times you are going to do. To jail. So we have to address that issue to make our system of justice truly a system of justice. Spoken, courts have true justice ensures that the rule of law stands above all and that every man and woman is subject to its role rule. That is the meaning of freedom, equality and justice. Now is the time for every man and woman to stand up for righteousness, justice, and to stand up for truth. And now is the time to stand against injustice of every kind, of aoral injustice criminal system. Injustice that privileges whites over people of color, the cultural injustice that favors one ethnic group over the others, the political injustice of Voter Suppression, the social injustice of an adequate education, the economic injustice of unemployment, underemployment and unequal pay, the gender injustice that denies women and girls of the world of equal rights and threatens them as objects of male domination. My father declared only a revolution of values can provide these principles and create the conditions for fair and just society. That revolution of values can only come through peaceable power, that is the power of the people, it can only come to the people who are consciously educated, morally equipped, actively engaged in the work of nonviolent social action. Thus we must march, we much to mobilize, we must organize, and we must continue to march. Let me recall something briefly as i prepared close. To close. A story my father spoke of as he pondered the young man sleeping through a great revolution. Too many of us are like rip van winkle, we are asleep. Nowknow, we have not had have an administration that seems to awaken us, but many of us have been asleep. We slept for eight years. We did not work. The conservatives and republicans worked. They worked for eight years. And we thought, obama is going to take care of us. You have to work and earn your freedom every generation. That means the work is never complete. It will become a but we have to keep working will be, but we have to keep working. So i say to you, and i hear it in the spirit of the voice of the late dr. Sandy ray, as he recalled the Avenue Mission he said, wake up and rise from the dead. See to it you make the most of a time, for these are evil days, these are evil days when they deny todays immigrants the same rights as white immigrants. These are evil days when they see the break of a families with heartless rationale. When the evil days president of the United States does not seem to understand that africa is a continent, and not a state. [laughter] [applause] and he refers the countries such as nigeria and haiti and el salvador donald, i do not talk like that. You know what he said. And the president insists our nation needs more citizens from white state like norway. I do not think we need to spend any time even talking about what it says and what it is. The problem is that you have a president who says things, but has the power to execute and create racism. That is a dangerous power and a dangerous position. And we cannot tolerate that. We have to find a way, you may say that does not make sense, but we have to work on this mans heart. You see, think about it but George Wallace was a staunch racist and we worked on his heart and ultimately George Wallace transformed. So dont tell me that we cannot transform, we have done it too many times. We are not working hard enough. My father and his team persistently precipitated crisis situations, because even in 1961, 62, when he went to visit president kennedy and he said, do you have any legislation you will present, and he said i would like to but i do not know, i have other domestic priorities. Then they said, we will precipitate a nonviolent crisis and you will have to respond to us. Thus if you years later we had a Civil Rights Act. Selma,lks marched from montgomery, led by john lewis, and we got a Voting Rights act. In 1958 we had for housing legislation. That was a Strategic Plan that was put in place. We need to have a Strategic Plan, not just in the Africanamerican Community, but for all progressives in america. But in the Africanamerican Community we need a think tank, a new think tank. Why do i say that . Because last year we spent over a trillion dollars and we do not have one black bank with a billion dollars and it, not one. If we had 10 of that, 100 billion in africanamerican institutions, we could create entrepreneurship, we could create jobs, and we could create options. We have work to do. We need to roll up our sleeves and work like we have never worked before. And so i say to you now is the time. We must also march to protect their neighborhoods, our childrens rights to play, we must march to build the civic institutions and a civil consciousness that checks the power of authority in an elitist market that favors the field over the many few over the many. And we must march to the symbolic citadel of justice, that is a moral march for righteousness, in march to transform the jangling discord of culture, the culture of violence, through the sweet elegy of a culture of nonviolence. This is a new march for a new generation. It is immoral march for justice a moral march for justice. It is a march to realize the dream. As a close im a share two things with you. One of my favorite quotes of my s, that we should all think about employing, because he said the ultimate measure of a human being is not where they stand in times of comfort and convenience, but where they stand in times of controversy and challenge. He went on to say that on some is aions cowardice acts and then is a position popular, but that is something deep inside our contents and he went on to say that sometimes we must take positions that are neither safe nor popular, nor politics, but we must take those positions because our consciouses tell us they are right. Now is the time. My mother took me to an undergraduate school, and at college in yellow springs, ohio and, there there is a statue of the educator, and there is in a description on the statue that made that impact that i will is remember. Untils, be ashamed to die you have won a victory for humanity. One more time, be ashamed to die until you have won a victory for humanity. You may sake my brother king, that is too grandiose, no it isnt. We can win victories in our school, in our places of worship, some of us will win victories in our city and some may win victories in our states, some may even win victories in our nation, and yet others may win victories in our world. What those words basically mean die until you to have done a Little Something to make the world in which we live in a little better than it was when you arrived. God bless you. God bless reverend sharpton. God bless the National Action network. [applause] reverend sharpton Martin Luther king iii. [applause] he has given us the charge, the thatte, and i would hope we go forth to work. Dnc, before wee hear from him, i want to give our awards out so that margin can take his leave martin can take his leave and at those of us that have to get to new york. We want to acknowledge Freedom Fighters in the audience, we are glad to have with us Melanie Campbell, from the black womans roundtable. [applause] is in barbara online the house. [applause] our the urban league, partner and friend, don craven. [applause] course the one who put all this together, who is a real leader extraordinaire, the head of our Washington Bureau of National Action network, where is ebony rollins . [applause] is is, ebony riling. And our deputy leader. [applause] our first award goes to, let us not forget dr. King was organizing a Poor Peoples Campaign and he was coming to washington to establish resurrection city. He got a call for reverend james lawson from reverend james lawson that there were garbage workers on strike in memphis, would he come to support them . Most of his staff was against him going, but dr. King said no, i am going to memphis, because unless we stand up for garbage workers we are not living up to our jobs. He went to memphis and as some folks that felt he was too moderate disrupted the march. And had a riot at the end of the march, calling themselves the young innovators. Young innovators. Invaders. He went back to save nonviolence and that is when he was killed, standing up for garbage workers. Would not have made the trip if around some they wear for trump, i have not seen them since. [applause] [laughter] they marched on obama and then took a vacation on trump, i do not understand that. But one of those that was one of those striking garbage workers, that keeps the banner going, that stands with Martin Luther king iii and those of us today as we continue to fight, as this administration is trying to bring labors back, donald trump trying to dislodge labor, because king died fighting for labor. Let us honor, from the garbage tokers of that time, from this time, the social justice leader award, from memphis, tennessee, give a hand to brother baxter. [applause]. Ome on, give him a hand [applause] good evening. Is a pleasure to have this award. He struggled with us and thank you for inviting me. [applause] give him a hand. [applause] one of the product enjoys of our movement is that we make sure that only do we have a butigenerational message, a lot of folks got on us many you cantwhen we said anybodyvil rights for unless you five civil rights for everybody. Continue to stand with the. One of the things that have made leaders, andsee im proud and grateful to have a leader and warrior that has. Tood in this organization when he saw the massive womens march in january, she laid out the resistance. Been aouldnt have Movement Without the january and they are not in it because of whatever, they are what is right. Stand helped get her a nomination and martin and i wanted to present. Riley was trained by herand i want to present to predecessor. The women tell me that im getting to to grouchy. She is gone and we have expanded another things, but her roots i want anthony to help present this award to her. Quite thank you. Im going to keep this brief for the sake of time. I volunteered for a year, and she taught me how to march logistics and by myself after her tradition. Andspect her leadership thank you so much. The second woman running. Thank you. Reverend sharpton let us honor in a ingram renee ingram. [applause] i will make this brief. I think this award means more than any other i have received whouse these are the people have walked watched me make the sausage. That is not necessarily a pretty thing. Reverend thank sharpton in my family who are here. Family, stand up. You. Y is what grounds specialo give a acknowledgment to reverend sharpton. Fortier talks about his parents on him in the water to teach them how to swim. His father would throw him in the water and he would come pick him up. Working with him was like that in the best light possible. Reverend sharpton taught me how im gettinge things this award for. Him i could dof things that i had no clue that i can do. Him. Lly appreciate he has fabulous women who are. Eading im going to keep it brief. Im going to say special thank you to some of the women who have helped lead me, like laura murphy and Melanie Campbell who is always my sister, friend and mentor. Women in thisany room. Thank you. Rev. Sharpton she is not lying. We just throw you in the water. If you shop torque the next morning, we know you didnt drown. She learned to be mighty great swimmer and we are proud of her. What those who are longdistance runners. Door to the end. There is no retirement package for Freedom Fighters. As long as ive been out here, there has been a voice. This, the 50th year where we will have to deal with the 50th assassination 50th year since the assassination of dr. King. The man who rose, never to be silenced, joe mathis. [applause] i have to share this and read entrepreneurs the fact that my 41st wedding you can see i dont have a woman problem. Someone he said youre not married under does birthday so you would never forget the anniversary. No, i married woman who was great, therefore i dont have to forget. I dont need kings birthday to remind me of just how fortunate i was doing i will say this and this is something you can use later. Say that if i should die and go to heaven and st. , you cans at the gate come into heaven. Youll have to wait, just come right in. If she is not, cant be heaven. Now martin, youre going to have because if you use this line, she is here. My favorite quote is an he says the two most Dangerous Things in the planet, sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. That is my favorite quote. I do it every single day. , i will donald trump yourse the word respect to cash disrespect to your granddaughter. I had to explain to tell that holedid not come from an s country or continent. Matter of fact, youre the only youin our family who say president the same because you are from the same tribe. He created this birth and les. Not create any sho not in the continent of africa or the caribbean. [applause] any were created, it is because man mastered up. Thank you very much. [applause] you. E matus, thank for representing our last award, limited knowledge the members of there fromas been day one in good and bad days. Former director executive and the chairman of our new jersey and he is down thus today. And our preside or who is the our mentor and she has been the on the transition team. A wealth or organization Welfare Organization in new annd in ascending outstanding example. [applause] said wearpton dr. King must have enter sectionalism. We must find shouldered to shoulder and have allies. The fact is everyone that is black, did not march in the 60s. Wiped was notwas only other side. We had some blacks that never came back. We never had a million man march until 1995. If they had, i would have been in the second term. Met neverne sister missed the fight. She is still fired up and still on the front line. We salute her in the city of she represents what labor is with fire in her belly. [applause] like the others, i cant do ofs without a couple [indiscernible] it is an honor to be standing in your presence. Thes an honor to be walking halls of justice. That takes onent that frankly i have never experienced in my life. Importantt simply as as it is, a fight or everything that martin has said before. Stood in line overnight over again. Fors not simply a fight fairness or justice or policies we champion. Be a check and balance for democracy. We must fight for a society that is safe and welcoming for all. Fight the antidemocratic, the nativists, authoritarianist, and actions of this president. I will not even say his name and andcronies that simply want tolerance. It is a which side are you on moment and we are on the side of justice. Thank you for this honor. Rev. Sharpton reverend wendy d gus before we bring on the chair of or mayorratic party, had to be late because of an emergency. She runs this town and she has to take care of all parts of it. Soon she will send a new yorker back to pennsylvania avenue. The mayor of washington, d. C. [applause] and sharpton good morning happy Martin Luther king day. Thank you for reading all of us ofay to celebrate and minus the legacy of dr. Martin luther king. I was just with my firefighters people me evacuate 62 from a couple safely. I want to thank those women for their bravery. Let me recognize members of the city council who are here. Let me, and addition to all continue to our great city. A city that has grown in some anyways so many ways. As we grow and change, we are reminded of our significant responsibility. There have been mayors who have worked with republican president s, but none like this one. We have been reminded and continued to be reminded of roles in the region, nation and the world to represent american ideals and democracy around the asld and we are greeted representatives of our great nation. Im also reminded of the role that mayors play at this critical time where the rubber meets the road and some anyways. The initiatives can push devices rhetoric of this president. We should also be proud because one of thee welcome some of our biggest orleans,tlanta, new charlotte and ray here in washington, d. C. Reminded and be support our mayors. Make sure there mayors know can be put our ideas into play at our city halls across the United States of america. These women will represent millions of people who can help the economic qualities. These women can change the course for many africanamerican men. These women can change the sistersfor their own and making sure that women have access to equal pay and just ourems across all of institutions and finally these women can make sure our Education Systems are places what a real find president told us. They find hope and change. Douglas you all. God bless you all. [applause] we will now have an opportunity to hear remarks from our chairman of the democratic committee, tom perez. [applause] morning. It is such an honor to be here. Thank you reverend sharpton,. Artin, mayor thank you to all the on ariz have done so much work here. This is a gathering of serial activists. Sure serialmaking activism is every day of every year and i have been reflecting a lot over the course of the issueew days on the basic of what is moral leadership . You cant help but ask that question because reverend sharpton challenged us. Invective with invective. It is not what dr. King would done. World leadership moral ership is what go to make the world a better place. When i think about moral leadership, i think about the work that he did. I think about the recognition of the golden rule. Behink about how we should working together to build communities for everyone. Think about how we should always remember that history every single day has its eyes on us. I think about the fact that america is at its best when we are working together. When i think about moral leadership and the principles which i was raised because my family came here from the dominican republic. We proudly share an island with haiti. We proudly do that. Were duboisgrandfather graduated from. Haiti, where they endured a horrific earthquake. Best when we its help people in need and that is exactly what barack obama did. Born, i miss barack obama. Boy, ie humid or miss barack obama. Anyone else here miss barack obama . [applause] my family dedicated health to this country. My mother was one of nine siblings. My father fought in the United States armed forces. They taught me that being an american is not about birth or bloodline, it is values you live every single day. Service, hard work, compassion for others. Is how we treat life in the twilight of and how we treat those in the shadows. These are my values because im a democrat. Im a democrat because these are my values. Family weref my american to the core from the moment they stepped on american soil. This is frankly what is under attack today. Figure then party. It is not about one issue. It is an allout assault on the fundamental idea of what it means to be american. Including the president uniters, notde dividers. Send a message to the world about the values we treasure and the values we will fight for. As i reflect on moral leadership, i find myself reflecting on another quote of once once said to nor evil is to become an office an accomplice to evil. That is unfortunate in itself. What was regrettable in most notable was the appalling people in themany republican leadership. Ul ryan call those remarks unfortunate. When the Washington Nationals have a rain delay and you must wait, that is unfortunate. When i tripped and stuck my toe, that is unfortunate. Was sincere if that ignorance or conscientious stupidity, but i think it is a little of both and that is the challenge of our generation. The appalling silence of some people when it is clear to me that the party of lincoln is officially dead and has been replaced by the party of trump, roy moore, joe arpaio. There is so much suffering going on right now. Our fellow citizens in puerto thisare suffering because president is attacking our values. Our young dreamers who are as american as my three born u. S. Suffering. E our haitian brothers and sisters are suffering. So many others are suffering and yet, what do we see from this congress . Reverend barbara called as a symptom of deeper morality. That is what we see across the country because we must always stand up to injustice. The Democratic Party stood up to George Wallace. Lbj, when he signed a Civil Rights Act of 1964, understood there will be electoral consequences, but there are things that transcended the moment. Regrettably, the appalling silence of todays republican leaders. I dont even know what Mitch Mcconnell has said because he is in the emergency room getting the stock in his mouth removed. Silence. Ling again, sincere ignorance or conscientious stupidity . What i know is that is not who we are as americans and what i have inw is that we front of these forces before. We have defeated these forces before and we will defeat them again. Had the privilege of getting to meet mr. Leach in the back of the room. Job was working as itrash truck and prepared for today, i found myself reading more and more about the sanitation workers. And in telling his story, the working conditions that they described were just nightmarish and you go to the Memphis Museum and you see the trash truck and you see the injustice and andgnity and so, mr. Taylor others did the only thing they could do. They marched, organized and declared i am a man. I will take lessons and i am a woman as well and they marched past the National Guard people and after dr. Kings assassination, they did not quit. The Community Rallied around them into exciter, the city Council Agreed to give workers a better deal. Alle told his story he said we wanted was some decency and dignity. Decency and dignity. Is there no demand more basic than that . Decency andof dignity is what inspired the workers. Risepowered activists to and students to stand up and make their voices heard. It brought john lewis and others to a bridge in alabama and to a courthouse in virginia. Dignity inspired many others in the room. As we know, it is a foundation of dr. Kings the and it is a promise of decency and legacy that has carried the downtrodden. Decency and dignity should not be simply values of the Democratic Party. They are values across america and we must fight for them because they are human rights. Some of the others talk about today. That is what we need to confront and as i said, we have confronted these forces before. We have defeated these forces before and we will defeat them again. Out of what a page happened last month in alabama. We organize, vote and win. Thank you to the africanamerican women across the state of alabama. The africanamerican men across the state in alabama who brought doug jones. Roy moore, you are not who we stand for as a nation. Organize and lead, we succeed. I was proud to be involved in that. The real credit goes to the africanamerican women and men who are the backbone of the Democratic Party. The voices we have seen in alabama are not simply coincidence. Inhave a mayor here washington, d. C. The american person is very clear message across the country. We want moral leadership. E want uniters we will leaders who will fight for decency and dignity. My friends, i will leave you with this. Ofare living in a time serious challenge, but dr. King acceptid while we must finite disappointments, we should never lose infinite hope. We are living in this time and im confident in our hope. We will rise and we will win, so if you believe that workers deserve jobs that pay a fair wage, you should organize and vote everywhere. If you believe that workers who work a fulltime job should not have to live in poverty, you should organize and vote everywhere. If you believe that health care is a right for all and not a , we shouldor a few organize and vote everywhere. If you believe we should be giving families a break instead organizey operations, and vote everywhere. If you believe we should be building more schools instead of prisons, you should organize and vote everywhere. If you believe every eligible voter should have the right to vote and that Voter Suppression should be in the history books, you should organize and folk everywhere. If you believe that women are the backbone of the Democratic Party, you should organize and vote everywhere. If you believe that a womans right to choose and bargain collectively come at should organize and vote everywhere. If you believe that the Labor Movement is the backbone of the progressive movement, we should organize and vote everywhere. If you believe that we should be welcoming brothers and sisters from haiti, from el salvador and elsewhere, you should organize and vote. Areou believe that dreamers not simply a group of 800,000 young adults, but they are a value statement as present obama said about who we are as americans, you should organize and vote. If you believe that black women are at the core of this party and have been the court this party and we must never take them for granted again, we should organize and vote. That we should have a secretary of education that actually believes in public education, you should organize and vote. If you believe that we need to justice back in the just in the department of justice, you should organize and vote. If you believe that every child should have access to a quality education, that clean Drinking Water is a basic human right, the Police Department should be held accountable to their communities, then you should organize and vote everywhere. Im confident we can do this. Thank you very much. [applause] we have fine diamond and we fed thisel ritually morning. We have heard from many in his figuresny prominent that should stay with all of us. Im going to walk out feeling several things. Martin luther king the third, be amed and or look create sholes. Because are any, it is man messed up or and god is going to fix it. Kim and tom perez, we have confronted these forces before and we have defeated them and we will again. And then to paraphrase, if you , you shouldumanity organize and vote everywhere. Confess have we been fed . Havearrett nourished we been nort nourished . Have we been energized . Were going to get out of here, i want to we do acknowledge our sponsors. Airbnb, at t, charter , elinications, comcast lilly and company, epson, macys , rai,ercard, pepsico ,ber, verizon, walmart, viacom and facebook. Let me say a few words about reginald mcknight. He is the head of u. S. Public policy a facebook. Ofhas more than a decade experience as a lawyer and policy pfizer. He has counseled major corporations on a range of Matters Regarding public policy, government affairs, investigations and litigations. As the head of public policy, he is responsible for the strategy of the companys multibilliondollar program and for to work on cuttingedge issues. He has been a leader in our community and he has demonstrated time and time again a commitment to service through his involvement in various activities. Among other things, he serves on the board for the university of South Carolina business school, the Fellowship Foundation and a former board member of Duke University school of law alumni board. Carolinative of south and his wife and he resided in virginia with their 20monthold son and attend effort street baptist church. Alfred street baptist church. Good morning. That hasng family sacrificed so much and inspired so many come up the National Action network that has been on the front line of the fight for justice and equality since their founding into all that gather here today it is truly an honor to stand before you to celebrate the life of the reverend dr. Martin luther king jr. At a moment that is particularly important. We all have a responsibility to stand up for all rights and justice. We give thanks for dr. Kings that ourat reminds us ofes are a personification prayer. Has passed a century since his death and it is right to acknowledge all the wonderful progress we have made because of organizations like this and so many Freedom Fighters in this room, but we must also remind ourselves that his work is not yet complete, so neither is ours. It is easy to recognize this as a moment of great challenge. We face issues that threaten the basic fabric of the community that dr. King envisioned. I think those who have been in this fight for a long time will tell you that challenges dont have an flow. You may arrive in different forms, but challenges are constant. Today, we are seeing rapid change across the nation. We are facing the greatest economic inequality since the great depression. There are largescale loses jobs and Economic Security throughout our nation. Concern is andr must be with the people left behind. As the challenges are constant, so are the opportunities. To seize upon these opportunities, we must act. Voices andt our speak with more clarity about the issues we face. What their presence reminds us is that he was there in the middle of the campaign focused on economic equality when he was assassinated. They were marching for justice and for jobs. Legalizeto discrimination, but the presence of economic opportunity. Lets be clear, theres so much work still much work to do. Africanamericans still have the highest honor women highest unemployment in the nation. ,n the Technology Industry africanamericans make up less than 5 of Technology Workers and only 24 as jobs are held by women. That number is also declining. Im thinking thankful to work a company that helps us recognizes diversity helps service. Providing Economic Opportunities to all communities is all people to work, again looking at the technology sector. Today, there are over half a million jobs in the United States. Criticalhese jobs are for the economy. That is why i was so excited to wedetroit last fall recently announced we will take this workforce the Relevant Program to 30 cities all across america, but we still have work to do. E cant stop there in all sectors, we must be committed to paying people what they deserve. As simple as that sounds, we live in a world 50 years after dr. King was assassinated in women unless. In 2000 women on average a . 80 for every dollar men earned in that cap is further for women of color. Black women were paid to exceed three cents for every dollar white men may. We should all take this personally. I cant help think about my grandmother who cleaned homes in charleston South Carolina just to make it full parents who grew up in poverty. Somehow through prayer and hardware have gone to the some of the top educators in the country for it when i think of their stories and stories of some women who are not nearly half of workforce, it is an embarrassment this should still ess the mens ascent job so unless the men in job menl unless unless than for the same job unless earn less than men for the same job. It is because of the challenges we face come up with the opportunities for us that im so energized and honored and humbled to stand before you today. Called byng generations before us to be the moral defibrillators of our time and shock the heart of this nation with hope, justice and love that dr. King taught us. We will rise together. Im confident of that. We may have come from different on different ships, but we are all in the same boat now. As we celebrate dr. Kings life example following the of the National Action network, let us ensure that his death was not in vain. Dreamhe reminded that the lives on through each of us and let us keep marching forward forever onward to that promise more free fortion all gods children. God bless you thank you very much. [applause] all right, we are nearing the end of the morning. If you have any doubt about how you can activate, get organized, were going to bring up the gentleman who is going to give you a few words about an Upcoming Event that will give you an opportunity to communicate. He is the National Action network leader. Please come up and say a few words. [applause] good morning. I havent seen you guys in a long time on the hello more energy than that. My name is right battle. Turn for the in vice chair member michael blake. I have a job today and that is to give you some information on you dont want to miss. Historically, National Action network has convene the largest Civil Rights Convention in the nation. Free to attend, our conventions are featured some of the most important figures in the nation. Through panels, workshops, we create a unique environment in a way that is truly unprecedented. Past years have featured president barack obama, bill clinton, joe biden, eric holder, hillary clinton, dr. Joseph king andaren scott helenevers, as well as the cast ofdaniels, empire, magic johnson, tyler , dinhzarrakes washington, mariah carey, Samuel L Jackson and john legend just to name a few. Marking 50 years after the assassination, the sears convention seeks to invoke dr. Martin luther kings vision for progress and hope. Coming repeatad that i cant what was that about people in countries that look like me. I can repeat the man we will honor during the convention, dr. Martin luther king jr. Insane government must decide whether he will walk in the light of altruism or the darkness of selfishness. We talked about this last year. Make the choice. Afraid of thean light. Lets not be a threat to the fact that the world still think its ok to call and treat me like monkeys in the jungle. Ser voice so up. Visit the National Action network website. Lastly, in the spirit of , remember you have the power to give life or destroy it. I choose to give. Thank you. [applause] give another round of battle. To mr. Rhine thank you. Moment tot to take a thank our volunteers who worked so hard. I would like to thank our interpreters who have been signing all morning and everyone else who woke up this early early this morning. Thank you and enjoy the rest of your day. Thank you for attending this event. Tuesday morning