U.S. Congressman Gary Peters, Colleen Peters Co-Chair Detroit “I Have A Dream” Speech Celebration

On Tuesday, January 22nd, a group of community leaders, businesses, and charitable organizations will come together at Detroit’s Gem Theatre to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Rev. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.  U.S. Congressman Gary Peters and Colleen Peters have been selected as the honorary co-chairs for the event, organized by the Spilling the Honey Project.  Advocating for Greater Detroit in Washington, D.C., U.S. Rep. Peters’ commitment to the advancement of civil rights and tolerance makes him an ideal choice to serve as this historic event’s honorary chairman. 

Spilling the Honey is a philanthropic initiative of Building Relationships, Inc., founded in 2012 by Dr. Shari Rogers to advance public awareness of the Holocaust and to promote the prevention of genocide.  Dennis Archer, Jr. is the chair of the evening’s program, which begins at 6:30 pm.  Daniel and Amie Stern are the co-chairs.  Proceeds from the inaugural Voices of the Dream Concert and Awards Ceremony will be donated to the Martin Luther King Jr., Research and Education Institute at Stanford University and Defeat the Label.  VIP tickets, which include a pre-reception can be purchased online at http://2013voicesofthedream.eventbrite.com 

The evening will feature a collection of artists, community leaders, and scholars to celebrate the progress of the civil rights movement in the city of Detroit and across the country, fifty years after Rev. King’s famed speech.  Clarence B. Jones, a scholar-in-residence at the Martin Luther King Jr. Research & Education Institute who collaborated with Rev. King on many of his speeches, including the “I Have A Dream” speech, will receive the Architect of Peace award at the event in honor of his lifelong commitment to social change and reconciliation.

Three regional leaders who have worked to find common ground among different ethnic, racial, and religious groups in metropolitan Detroit will be presented the first Detroit Innovation & Renewal Award.  The award will be presented to Arthur Horwitz, president of Renaissance Media and publisher of the Detroit Jewish News; Martin Manna, president of the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce and co-publisher of the Chaldean News; and Bankole Thompson, senior editor of the Michigan Chronicle.  In addition, UAW vice president General Holiefield will receive the 2013 Citizen for Change award.

Other speakers will include Charles Asher Small, director of the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy and Koret Distinguished Scholar at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution; and entrepreneur and author Robert Levin, CEO and founder of Transclick Inc., who has taught at Columbia University and serves as advisor to the National Geographic Society and as a contributing member of the World Economic Forum.

The concert and awards presentation will be headlined by Grammy Award-winner Miri Ben-Ari, a classically trained violinist who has created her own pioneering sound and recorded with a wide variety of artists including Kanye West, Jay Z, Wyclef Jean, Alicia Keys, Wynton Marsalis and others. Broadway actress/singer Simone will perform during the award ceremony. She is the daughter the legendary Nina Simone.  Other performers who will take part in the concert include; KidzBop lead singer Elijah J, who performed in Disney’s Lion King; Detroit pop/rock group See Jane Rock; and poet/actor/playwright activist Jessica Care Moore.

Area community partners include Defeat the Label, a Michigan-based anti-bullying campaign; the Holocaust Memorial Center Zekelman Family Campus; the Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights, and the NAACP Detroit Branch.  Sponsors include the Cummings Foundation, the DTE Energy Foundation, Homedics Inc., Greektown Casino and Hotel, International Development Company, Robert Dipilla, D.D.S, Mr. and Mrs S. Dennis Rogers, the American Jewish Committee, Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit, Gorman’s, and the Anti-Defamation League.

All media inquiries and interview requests may be sent to Ryan Fishman at ryanfishman@steward-media.com, or on his cell, 248-425-5642.