Essex County Students, Officials Speak; 50th Year Of MLK’s Death

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Essex County officials hosted a ceremony to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Wednesday. Several local students and officials attended the tribute, which took place the Essex County Hall of Records.

"Dr. King was one of our nation's greatest leaders and one of his last public appearances was his visit to Newark, just a week before he was taken from us," Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. said. "His message of hope, peace and equality has resonated throughout the decades and inspired generations - and is just as poignant and relevant today as it was in 1968.”

DiVincenzo said that remembering King’s contributions and laying a wreath at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. statue in front of the Essex County Hall of Records was a fitting tribute to an individual “whose guidance and foresight impacted our nation.”

During the ceremony, students from the Essex County Newark Tech Campus shared their thoughts on what King means to them:

• “Dr. King has taught me to be a dreamer, an activist, and to dare to be someone who thinks outside the box. While there are still great strides to be made in our country regarding race relations, I believe his message for my generation should transcend to other areas, including gender equality, religious tolerance, LGBT advocacy, immigration, and gun control... Collectively, we seek to create a world where man or woman, regardless of race, religion or sexual orientation, can be viewed and respected as an equal." - Newark Tech senior Abbey Lawrence
• "Today we honor Dr. King once again for the love he gave, the ideas and visions he bestowed upon us, and the sacrifices he made to ensure that we live a life in which we are free. But the journey does not end there. It is essential that we finish where he left off. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s motive was and still is to grow with love, encourage with love, and persist with love." - Newark Tech senior Shania Langford
• "Martin Luther King Jr. was a man whom many individuals looked up to, he was a role model to those who had no hope. He fought for equal pay, attended churches where he inspired minorities to be strong, and even visited schools to help motivate and guide the younger generation. He went ahead and established a civil rights movement that inspired people all around the world. Dr. King empowered communities throughout the country to accomplish what many assumed to be impossible. He fought against the segregation of schools, pushed for equal pay for workers, and lead non-violent resistance to racial injustice." - Newark Tech senior Christian Gomez-Seino

The students’ sentiments were echoed by their elected representatives.

"I am a little conflicted because today is the anniversary of Dr. King's death,” said NJ State Senator and Deputy Chief of Staff Teresa Ruiz. “But this is an opportunity to take back the negativity and celebrate a life that was taken away from us too early.”

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka said that King taught people that the fight for justice has to be “stronger than our enemies' anger.”

“Today we are commemorating his assassination, but we are also celebrating the sacrifice he made for all of us," Baraka added.

Deputy Chief of Staff William Payne talked about the various times he met King when the minister visited Newark.

"I saw him at an event at Abyssinian Church in Newark and said 'I'll see you next time' as he was leaving,” Payne said. “The next time I saw him was at his funeral.”

King's legacy needs to be known and understood by everyone “because we all have an obligation to continue his work," Payne said.

Larry Hamm, president of the Peoples Organization for Progress, said that he was grateful to King for challenging the structure of society and speaking about eradicating poverty, racism and war.

“I am proud to be a resident of Essex County because I can stand next to his statue in this county complex,” Hamm said. “I am proud because Essex County is the only place where there are larger than life-sized statues of Dr. King and Rosa Parks.”

Freeholder Vice President Wayne Richardson said that King talked about the promised land and reaching the mountain top, but reminded people that the world may not be there yet.

“There is still a lot of work to be done,” Richardson said. “But the guidance Dr. King gave are just as valid today as it was 50 years ago.”

Essex County Freeholder Patricia Sebold reminded people that King was killed by a man who used an alias to purchase a gun.

“Can you imagine what he would say about society today?” Sebold asked. “There is much more we have to do to make his dreams become reality.”

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Photo: Essex County