Take a Delicious Break for Social Justice on Martin Luther King Day - Celebrate Again in June

Four local organizations will “pay it forward” to produce a community experience that will be remembered and enjoyed by all. The participants are Mara’s Café and Bakery, Social Justice Matters, Inc. (SJM), a local grass-roots organization, “Voices from the Margins,” a Scotch Plains Public Library book group engaged in reading and discussing narratives that have shaped our country, and Willow Grove Church, which is generously providing space for the festivities. The experience is “Juneteenth.”

On Martin Luther King Day, January 16, from noon to 6 pm, Mara’s will be donating a percentage of its sales to SJM to help sponsor “Juneteenth.” The connection between the two events is unequivocally apparent. Two and a half years after Presidents Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, on June 19, 1865, news finally came to Texas that the Civil War had ended and all slaves were now freed. “Juneteenth” has become the most popular annual celebration of African American emancipation from slavery.

With the help of the donation from Mara’s, SJM members and “Voices of the Margin” participants will organize the activities on June 19 and the public will be kept abreast of developments. All members of the community will be invited to be part of “Juneteenth,” a day filled with music, food, and good fellowship.

Become a partner to help ”pay it forward” by going to Mara’s on January 16 for a meal, or a cup of coffee between noon and 6 pm, and know the results will be a memorable “Juneteenth.” Sign up for this and other Day of Service activities at http://spfmlkday.wildapricot.org.

Keep current with Juneteenth planning at www.socialjusticematters.org and on Facebook at SJ Matters. Information about “Voices from the Margins,” can be found at http://www.scotlib.org/voices-from-the-margins/