Natalia McRae strongly feels that if you read a speech Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
YOUNGSTOWN — Natalia McRae strongly feels that if you read a speech Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered during a victorious moment nearly 56 years ago, it will quickly become apparent that his words are just as relevant today.
“Dr. King said this in 1965 at the end of the Selma-to-Montgomery march. It is still appropriate today,” McRae, an East High School senior and member of Mahoning Valley Sojourn to the Past, said.
McRae was referring to King’s “How Long, Not Long” speech that he delivered to about 25,000 people who gathered March 25, 1965, in Montgomery, Ala., at the conclusion of the famous five-day, 54-mile walk for voting rights. King’s words were intended mainly to reassure the masses that the days of brutality in the South against blacks by white people were waning.
McRae recited much of the civil rights leader’s speech as part of Sunday afternoon’s virtual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Worship Service.
Hosting the one-hour Zoom event to remember and honor King’s life and legacy was the Martin Luther King Planning Committee of the Mahoning Valley. The Rev. Kenneth L. Simon, pastor of New Bethel Baptist Church in Youngstown, served as worship leader.
King’s 1965 speech reads in part:
“Let us march on ballot boxes, march on ballot boxes until race-baiters disappear from the political arena. Let us march on ballot boxes until the salient misdeeds of bloodthirsty mobs will be transformed into the calculated good deeds of orderly citizens.
“Let us march on ballot boxes until the white supremacists of our nation tremble away in silence. Let us march on ballot boxes until we send to our city councils, state legislators and the United States Congress, men who will not fear to do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with thy God.
“And so I plead with you this afternoon as we go ahead, remain committed to nonviolence. …We must come to see that the end we seek is a society at peace with itself, a society that can live with its conscience.
“I know you are asking today, ‘How long will it take?’ Somebody’s asking, ‘How long will prejudice blind the visions of men, darken their understanding and drive bright-eyed wisdom from her sacred throne?’
- https://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/english/1/webform/m3gaHacks-free-v-bucks-generator-plegit-776.pdf
- https://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/english/1/webform/mega-hacks-free-fortnite-vbucks-generator-no-verify-update-343.pdf
- https://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/english/1/webform/megahacks-free-v-bucks-generator-plegit-777.pdf
- https://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/english/1/webform/pxb-free-fortnite-vbucks-generator-wmg.pdf
- https://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/english/1/webform/rxxb-free-fortnite-vbucks-generator-wmf.pdf
- http://officialguccimane.ning.com/photo/albums/free-v-buck-generator-7
- http://network-marketing.ning.com/profiles/blogs/fortnite-free-v-buck-generator
- https://www.peeranswer.com/question/6005ce325be3978b52842d81
- https://dcm.shivtr.com/forum_threads/3293473
- https://www.topfind88.com/post/1279772/free-v-buck-generator
- https://www.posts123.com/post/1279772/free-v-buck-generator
- https://authors.curseforge.com/paste/c7b2c8ca
- http://zambezionline.com/forum/index.php?page=topicview&id=general-chat%2Ffree-v-buck-generator_5&post_id=30102&redirected=1#post_30102
- http://sciencemission.com/forum/index.php?page=topicview&id=general-chat%2Ffree-v-buck-generator_5&post_id=24677&redirected=1#post_24677
- http://www.rccsonline.com/eSports/forum/discussion/614744/free-v-buck-generator
- http://freedomdawning.org/phorum/read.php?1,10370
- http://lyricsandvoicez.com/blogs/post/113210
- https://www.vingle.net/posts/3541789
- http://www.goqna.com/42652/v-buck-generator
- https://ternopilinkling.com/user-blogs/topic/16574
- “How long? Not long, because no lie can live forever.
“How long? Not long, because you shall reap what you sow.
“How long? Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
The keynote speaker was the Rev. Michael Harrison Sr., pastor of Union Baptist Church in Youngstown, who noted that more than 50 years after King’s assassination April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tenn., problems that disproportionately affect black people remain entrenched.
For example, police killed an estimated 765 citizens nationwide last year, about 28 percent of whom were black — even though blacks comprise only about 13 percent of the population, he noted.
There were over 60 days between St. Mary Catholic Central winning a Regional volleyball title and their next victory over Bronson in the state quarterfinals. In between, I read emails and attended press briefings from the Michigan High School Athletic Association that painted a confusing picture.
At one point, the MHSAA said there was no way football games could be played outdoors in January, so they were determined to finish before the end of the year or just not at all.
Obviously, they were way off.
Only when SMCC stepped onto the court for the first set against Schoolcraft in the state finals was I convinced we were finally going to see the end of this long, strange journey.
And not a moment before.
After all, just two days earlier, Schoolcraft’s state semifinal opponent, Saginaw Valley Lutheran, was forced to forfeit thanks to the virus. The same thing happened in the football playoffs over the weekend when Clarkston Everest Collegiate – the team that eliminated Summerfield one week ago – also withdrew from its semifinal contest thanks to the virus.
Even when the season resumed, there was no guarantee of playing a single game.
But it sure was worth the wait!
SMCC was dominant the entire season. The Kestrels finished the year 39-2 and were deservedly ranked No. 1 in Division 3 from the start.
This team would’ve been ranked even in Division 1. That’s not hyperbole. SMCC went toe-to-toe with top D1 teams, including a victory over No. 6 Ann Arbor Skyline.
It’s no wonder the Kestrels flew right through the Division 3 playoffs. They never dropped a set in the postseason and easily toppled No. 5 Beaverton and No. 2 Schoolcraft. That final victory over the Eagles in Battle Creek proved there was a wide gap between No. 1 and rest of the pack.
I asked First Team All-Stater and Miss Volleyball finalist Mikayla Haut about that gap. In fairness, it’s a pretty abstract question with no clear answer, but her response is as good as any. SMCC doesn’t seek to be better than everybody else, they just try to be the best version of themselves.
“Our chemistry is just unmatched by any team,” Haut said. “We’re just so comfortable with each other on the court that we know what ball to take and when to take it. Our connection is just unmatched.”
In essence, they all make each other better.
You saw it on the court.
The Kestrels don’t need to rely on Haut to have a good performance.
Our photographer, Tom Hawley, said after SMCC’s semifinal win over Beaverton that if Haut wasn’t around then Abbie Costlow would have been our Player of the Year. I can’t really disagree. Haut, Costlow, Anna Dean, and Kylie Barron all would be a top 1 or 2 player on any other team in the Region.
The only downside is that those four, along with setter Grace Lipford, libero Jaydin Nowak, and rightside hitter Olivia Anderson, are all seniors. Those are seven huge holes the Kestrels will have to fill next year.
Junior setter Kate Collingsworth will be the returner with the most experience. She’ll be expected to lead the team along with juniors Ava Kuehnlein and Audrey Cousino.
“Keep leading and keep talking,” Collingsworth said when I asked her to look forward to next season. “Just get the girls together and get that same connection going that we had this year. ... I’m sure next year we’ll have a strong bond.”
Cousino had one of her best games of the season in the state championship. She hit .500 and was third on the team with 5 kills. I expect a lot more of the offense will run through her next season and her performance Saturday gave a sneak peek.
“There were times when (Audrey) didn’t get as many attacks as she would like, but I think today she was prepared and she was ready,” coach Karen O’Brien said. “When she got them, she had one of her best matches.”
But all that is just my sports writer brain constantly churning forward to the next chapter. That wouldn’t be possible if we hadn’t first succeeded in writing an end to this chapter.
It would be like reading a book that has no ending. That would’ve driven me crazy.
I can’t even imagine how hard it would’ve been for SMCC’s players, coaches, family, and friends if COVID-19 had taken away their final moments together. I’m happy this group – especially one with so many seniors – got their happily ever after.
I asked coach O’Brien if she ever actually thought she’d get to see the moment when her team raised the trophy. Like me, she clearly had forgone any fortune-telling fantasies.
“Very hesitant off and on all year,” O’Brien said. “But I’m so glad we got to finish it for them.”
Readers can contact Ryan by email at RLoren@monroenews.com. Follow him on Twitter @RynLoren.
The attack on the U.S. Capitol building Jan. 6 and the killing last May of George Floyd in Minneapolis underscore why it’s vital people recommit themselves to pursuing higher goals such as academic excellence, better community-policing efforts, refraining from doing business with banks that don’t invest in the community, achieving greater equity and opportunities, being part of political movements with a clear vision, achieving more centralized entrepreneurship and being one another’s keepers, Harrison explained.
King also had the wisdom to realize the value of reaching beyond oneself to leave a greater footprint.
“It’s not about what you do now, but what you leave later,” said Harrison, adding that a love of God was the driving force behind King’s willingness to march and be beaten and jailed while working for a more just society.
In addition, King, like most leaders, accepted that he would face fierce opposition, but he rose to the occasion, Harrison continued. The longtime pastor added he is optimistic change will soon start to take place after the last four years of trauma and pain for the nation — a time when many white nationalists “rose up like never before.”
The service also included Hebrew and Koran readings, along with a New Testament lesson read by the Rev. Tracy Dawson, pastor of Christ Centered Church in Youngstown.
Delivering the benediction was the Rev. Jim Ray of Poland, a longtime civil rights activist, who cited several of King’s six principles of nonviolence he hopes more people will adopt and follow. They include the concepts that nonviolence seeks to win friendships and defeat injustice, not people.
The musical selections were “Lift Every Voice and Sing” and “Heal the Land.”