Office of the Mayor
Proclamation
Lawrence, Kansas
WHEREAS: The theme of the 27th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration is “Living His Legacy: A Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” and by such an event, we are reaffirming our rights as citizens and the liberties possible in the United States and thereby expressing our hopes, dreams, and beliefs, as well as celebrating the King Monument dedicated recently in Washington, DC; and
WHEREAS: National holidays and the building of monuments, such as Dr. King’s, exemplify our way of life and the exceptional and separate character of our values; and
WHEREAS: We recall the legacy that the Reverend Dr. King created and we rededicate ourselves to the truths that he strove for, in this special year of commemoration we thus engage in the valuable activity of reserving a day or days toward that end; and
WHEREAS: In 1957, the Reverend Dr. King stated regarding the method of nonviolent resistance that brought about the great and liberating changes of the civil rights movement and a method still needed today: “It is a method that challenges all people struggling for justice and freedom. God grant that we wage the struggle with dignity and discipline. May all who suffer oppression in this world reject the self-defeating method of retaliatory violence and choose the method that seeks to redeem. Through using this method wisely and courageously we will emerge from the bleak and desolate midnight of man’s inhumanity to man into the bright daybreak of freedom and justice.” and
WHEREAS: The City of Lawrence, Kansas, USD #497, the University of Kansas, along with other community institutions, are cooperating to support the activities planned for the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Celebration and urge local residents to take part in them;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Aron Cromwell, Mayor of the City of Lawrence, Kansas, do hereby proclaim the week of January 9 – 16 as