'A MODERN-DAY MOSES' KING'S 75TH BIRTHDAY OBSERVED.Byline: Dana Bartholomew Staff Writer LOS ANGELES Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. - They came to celebrate racial freedom. They gathered to champion racial inclusion. And they joined Sunday to honor the life and legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Nearly 200 residents from across Los Angeles attended a birthday celebration for the slain civil rights activist at the Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills The Hollywood Hills, an unofficial designation of part of the City of Los Angeles, California, are part of the eastern section of the low transverse range of the Santa Monica Mountains, which extends from the Los Feliz District and Hollywood, on the south side of the Valley, to cemetery's Hall of Liberty. ``Today, we have gathered, to not just celebrate the birthday of a great American hero American Hero may refer to:
tr.v. op·pressed, op·press·ing, op·press·es 1. To keep down by severe and unjust use of force or authority: a people who were oppressed by tyranny. 2. people all over the planet. ``We're here to pay respect to a modern-day Moses.'' Had King lived, Thursday would have been his 75th birthday. The reverend scholar who led a nonviolent campaign against institutional segregation and racial injustice was assassinated as·sas·si·nate tr.v. as·sas·si·nat·ed, as·sas·si·nat·ing, as·sas·si·nates 1. To murder (a prominent person) by surprise attack, as for political reasons. 2. on April 4, 1968. Speakers lauded King's dream of equality for all people. They also praised subsequent advances by minorities - from integrated lunch counters to positions of civic power. Los Angeles Police Commission President David S. Cunningham, an African-American, recalled the day he and his grandmother were denied food at a Texas diner in 1960 during the civil rights era. ``I've since been able to stand tall among everybody in this city, and in this great nation,'' he said. As we fulfill a duty to join in public life, he said, we must become ``a drum major for justice - we must be willing to stand up and say what is right.'' A proclamation by President George W. Bush honoring King was read during the 90-minute event. Los Angeles City Council  The Los Angeles City Council is the governing body of the City of Los Angeles, California, United States. members Dennis Zine
and Wendy Greuel, who represent the San Fernando Valley San Fernando ValleyValley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. , read a proclamation on behalf of the city of Los Angeles
An invocation was delivered by the Rev. Robert Bock of First Christian Church First Christian Church can refer to:
Sunday's celebration, Forest Lawn's second to commemorate King, included 78 photographs by Benedict J. Fernandez, images of King as well as those for and against civil rights. The gallery will be on display until Feb. 25, during the observance of Black History Month at the Hall of Liberty. ``I knew that he was a man that God had called to do his work,'' said B.J. Harper of Santa Monica, an African-American woman who remembers hearing King speak during his march on Washington. ``He was a giant,'' she said, standing with her two sons to admire a photo of the slain hero mourned in an open casket. ``He really put his life on the line for all people to come together.'' Dana Bartholomew, (818) 713-3730 dana.bartholomew(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1) Natasha Davis, 13, of Long Beach takes in a picture of a young Jesse Jackson at the ``Countdown to Eternity'' photo exhibit at the Hall of Liberty at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills. (2 -- ran in Glen/Bur edition only) Opera singer Henrietta Davis, sings ``Lift Every Voice and Sing Lift Every Voice and Sing — often called "The Negro National Anthem" — was written as a poem by James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) and then set to music by his brother John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954) in 1900. ,'' sometimes called the black national anthem, during Sunday's 75th birthday celebration for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer |
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