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Butler County Civic League hosts MLK Freedom Breakfast

BRUCE BRANUM/THE GREENVILLE STANDARD

Minister L. Kirk Hatcher speaks at the recent MLK Freedom Breakfast. Also pictured is George Cook, Chairman of the Butler County Civic League. (Bruce Branum/The Standard)

Minister L. Kirk Hatcher speaks at the recent MLK Freedom Breakfast. Also pictured is George Cook, Chairman of the Butler County Civic League. (Bruce Branum/The Standard)

On Monday, Jan. 16, the Butler County Civic League (BCCL) hosted a Freedom Breakfast. The theme of the event was “The struggle is not over, we must continue to pursue equality.”

Honorable attendees included Greenville Mayor Dexter McLendon, Butler County Commission Chairman Frank Hickman and Butler County Commissioners; Allan Whittle, Joey Peavy, Darrell Sanders and Jesse McWilliams. Other notable attendees include the Greenville Police Department Chief Justin Lovvorn and Assistant Chief Anthony Barganier, Circuit Clerk Mattie Gomillion and Butler County Sheriff Kenny Hardin.

Minister L. Kirk Hatcher served as the guest speaker and was welcomed by George Cook, Chairman of the BCCL. Kirk currently serves as Special Consultant and Assistant to Dr. Joe L. Reed, Chairman of the Alabama Democratic Conference in Montgomery. He is an ordained minister and accomplished vocalist and pianist.

“Keep the faith, keep the faith,” was Kirk’s overall message. It was an uplifting oratory which Kirk began, “For a nation in search of itself, the struggle is far from over. Keep the faith. Keep the faith.” He also spoke that there should be an open democracy with and liberty and justice and all. In closing, before performing a crowd rousing rendition of and old gospel hymn, Jacob’s Ladder, Kirk said, “We are here to establish before the world that people can be brought together, that’s what Dr. King was doing. So get ready my friends for some new freedom is on the way.”

Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister and social activist who played a key role in the American Civil Rights Movement from the mid 1950’ until his assassination in 1968. He was the driving force behind the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the march on Washington, DC, which helped bring about the Civil rights act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Acts of 1965. King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 and is remembered each year on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a US federal holiday.

King was Born: Jan. 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Ga. and assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tenn.

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