The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
REVITALIZING THE DREAM
Faith leaders, legislators work to upgrade MLK urban centers
MIDDLETOWN — The city is spearheading a statewide economic development initiative that aims to revitalize urban centers where streets bear the name of civil rights leader the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Norwalk and New Britain have joined with Middletown leaders in the Martin Luther King Jr. Corridors Initiative, a stimulus program that also intends to address jobs, housing and education in these communities through a public-private partnership between faith, public and private sector leaders, groups and institutions.
Faith leaders joined numerous state and local officials, filling City Hall Council Chambers in a two-hour program Friday afternoon that began with the audience joining in on “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”
“We deliberately named streets after (King) to deliberately further his dream, but we deliberately did nothing there afterwards.”
Deputy House Speaker Bruce Morris
A $100,000 grant from the state is intended to kick start the initiative. Liberty Bank and Key Bank, along with private contributors, have promised at least another $50,000, said state Sen. Matt Lesser, D-Middletown.
Deputy House Speaker Bruce Morris, D-Norwalk, welcomed Lesser, a member of the Black and Latino caucus (his mother is from Argentina), and state Rep. Quentin Phipps, D-Middletown, the city’s first black state representative. Lesser and state Sen. Ed Gomes, of Bridgeport, were instrumental in introducing and spearheading the MLK project.
“Times are changing, but will we make certain the outcomes will change?” Morris asked, then referenced the words of Rev. William McKissick, president of the Middletown Ministerial Alliance, who had preceded him at the dias.
“You said it well. The condition of this country is so divided . ... We deliberately named streets after (King) to deliberately further his dream, but we deliberately did nothing there afterwards. It takes a deliberate grant like this, that is designed to bring all of us together,” Morris said, his voice raising with emotion.
Legislation was developed with the state Department of Banking, in collaboration with Lesser and Gomes, in response to concerns, conditions and opportunities identified in talks between former Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the founders of FREEDOM (Faith, Restoration, Empowerment & Economic Development Outreach Ministries).
The latter includes the Rev. Carl McCluster, pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Bridgeport; and social justice advocate and faith and community leader William Callion of Stamford.
Morris referenced King’s speech to striking sanitation workers at Mason Temple in Memphis, Tenn., the day before he was assassinated.
“Unless the economy includes all of us — it included us when we were black and picking cotton — I care about it (including) all of us as beneficiaries of that economy. That’s what this grant is about,” Morris said.
The idea is the ensure places such as Middletown, Norwalk and New Britain are economically inclusive, he said.
“We cannot allow our urban cities to dwindle: be left to themselves. Now we have the opportunity to collaborate, to think together about how these areas will benefit everyone’s education, because we’ve all said education is the great equalizer — making sure all kids in these communities are educated,” Morris said.
Lesser took the microphone, acknowledging the effect the lawmaker/pastor’s words have on audiences. Lesser said his mission, while a fellow state representative, was to never follow Morris during a press conference. “I failed at that today,” he said, as laughter rang around the room.
“We are 56 years from the March on Washington, and we often forget it wasn’t the March on Washington, it was a March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. During his lifetime, Dr. King was able to win great battles for legal equality for civil rights on paper. We’ve learned there’s a big difference between legal equality and substantive equality, that economic justice, which is what we’re here talking about today, is critical,” Lesser said.
“That vision of economic justice he died by — that is still unrealized,” he added.
Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz wasn’t able to attend the presentation. Her senior advisor, Jimmy Tickey, read a statement from the Middletown resident.
“Dr. King said, ‘By raising the living standards of millions, labor miraculously created a market for industry, and lifted the whole nation to undreamed levels of production.’ Gov. Lamont and I believe that in order to lift Connecticut up to new levels, we must also raise the living standards of Connecticut’s people and address some of the most serious economic inequalities in Connecticut,” Tickey read.
That includes passing paid family medical leave, raising the minimum wage to $15, and closing the gender pay gap, Bysiewicz said in her letter. Black and Latino women are making 63 cents and 54 cents, respectively, compared to their male counterparts’ $1, she said.
Wesleyan University was host to King four times — in 1962, 1963, 1964 (when he delivered the baccalaureate address) and 1966), according to the special collections and archive blog. President Michael Roth attended the proceedings. He will work with the collaborative, along with CONNCAN (which aims to improve education for children statewide), and municipal and state education leaders to improve educational outcomes and enhance the town-gown relationship, according to the initiative.
The plan was designed to develop and share models that can be replicated in neighborhoods and communities in municipalities throughout Connecticut — and the nation.
“MLK Boulevard: A Snapshot of King's Dream Deferred,” published on the Colorlines daily news site delves into some of the more than 900 streets in the United States named after the Nobel Prize winner.
“The existence of so many Martin Luther King streets is complicated by the fact that so little of the economic justice that King fought for five decades ago has come to fruition.
“According to researchers at the University of North Texas, residents in neighborhoods with streets named after King are $6,000 poorer than residents in neighborhoods without one,” the Colorlines article reads.