Boston Celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day
BOSTON (CBS/AP) -- The city of Boston celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day with an annual breakfast Monday morning.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, Governor Charlie Baker, and community leaders came together at the Boston Convention Center to remember MLK and discuss the importance of his values.
"On this Martin Luther King Day, his words still resonate," said Rev. Dr. William Bobby McClain.
Walsh pointed back to King's message to Boston in 1965 that the city should be a "testing ground...for the ideas of freedom."
Walsh said, "His challenge to us: make sure that as Boston continues to grow and develop, everyone is included in that growth."
The breakfast is the nation's longest-running event dedicated to King's legacy.
If there was ever a time when Dr. King's words need to be remembered, honored, appreciated, and lived, that time is now, and I was proud to join with so many at this morning's #MLKBoston Breakfast to celebrate his legacy. #MLKDay pic.twitter.com/qkOhGij3nH
— Charlie Baker (@MassGovernor) January 15, 2018
Boston University said its celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day will be shaped by concerns about President Donald Trump's administration and its commitment to civil rights.
School officials said they will host several speakers at a Monday ceremony to discuss the increasing relevance of King's message amid today's politics.
King received a doctorate degree in systematic theology from Boston University in 1955 and later donated his papers to the school before his assassination in 1968.
Speakers at the ceremony will include poet Kamilah Aisha Moon and university President Robert A. Brown.
Moon said in an interview published by BU that educational institutions are "under direct threat" from the Trump administration and that King's message is particularly important today.
The school will also hold a day of service.
This April marks 50 years since Dr. King's assassination.
Boston is in the process of creating a permanent monument.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)