Looking for MLK Day events? DFW groups take celebration online during holiday weekend
Arlington High School sophomore Ray Robertson received a special assignment: Write and perform a rap for the school’s submission to the city’s step show and drum line event held in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
His teacher, assistant band director Brian Lowe, noticed Ray freestyling in the stands during shows and wanted to add something different to the minutes-long arrangement. With some input from his friends, Ray put together a 30-second rap break about King’s work for civil rights and national unity.
“This is the first time I really felt like I actually contributed to something like this. I was glad, I was happy about it,” Ray said.
Ray’s verse and Arlington High’s drumline’s performance is one of several from students airing Saturday morning as part of the city’s Advancing the Dream Celebration, a four-day salute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy and ideals. The city has observed a long weekend of events since 1987, but this year’s celebration includes the first online-only event.
This year’s celebration marks the first time drumlines have performed during the event. Participating in the program, which was scheduled to kick off Friday evening with scholarship awards and discussion with the city’s Unity Council, gave Lowe and his students a new look into the city’s celebrations — as well as a chance to play together in a year where many students opted to attend classes from home.
“To all of a sudden have a large portion of your group volunteer their own time on their holiday break, it all around just kind of made everyone feel good, especially those who were virtual students who were allowed to come up to put that together,” Lowe said.
The drum line and step show featuring Arlington School District groups will air at 10 a.m. Saturday on Arlingtonmlk.com, AT&T U-Verse Channel 99 and Spectrum Channel 16. The event will also be streamed on Facebook and YouTube. Events including the show will be available to watch online after the stream.
The concept of hosting virtual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations was initially a novelty to Arlington organizers. With new events and educational opportunities, paired with the reach afforded by online events, planners hope the program reaches a broader and larger audience than ever before.
Reimagining the celebration
Lemuel Randolph, city parks and recreation department director and a celebration organizer, said the group began tinkering with technology and infusing traditional events with new learning opportunities and artists once they accepted hosting in-person events would remain unsafe in 2021.
“It’s been a learning curve for many, but it’s really presented an opportunity to kind of reimagine the event, to expand it in a way and to reach an audience we traditionally would not have been able to reach if everything was in person,” Randolph said.
Verb Kulture, a DFW-area event planner and poet, has organized the event Poetry Meets Jazz for the celebration in previous years. The digital shift for the event, she said, challenged her and her team to create a storyline for the acts, bring in new artists and feature the band she formed during the pandemic, Revolution and Funk Project.
“I’m excited about that part, being able to incorporate the Revolution of Funk Project with the Arlington MLK celebration,” Kulture said. ‘I just think it’s a perfect platform for what we do.”
The Saturday evening event will feature artists from around the country, as well as a taste of Arlington and North Texas anyone can view, Kulture said. Poetry Meets Jazz begins at 7 p.m. Saturday.
MLK events around DFW
In addition to the drum line and step show and Poetry Meets Jazz, Dr. Dennis Wiles, pastor of Arlington First Baptist Church, will speak at the Hubert Moss Ecumenical Service at 5 p.m. Sunday.
Arlington celebrations wrap up 10 a.m. Monday with the MLK Day of Service Festival Virtual Celebration. The event will showcase community service programs, winners of the high school MLK Day essay contest, dance performances and art contest winners.
In Fort Worth Saturday, The Ranch at 3534 E. Berry St. will host a Family Fun Day and canned food and blanket drop-off from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday evening, The Warehouse at 1125 E. Berry St. will host entertainment events Saturday and Sunday evenings. Celebrate With Music! featuring the David Whiteman Band begins at 8 p.m. Saturday. Sunday’s event is An Evening of Jazz and starts at 7 p.m. Tickets for the in-person celebration must be purchased in advance, but the performances will be streamed on YouTube for free.
New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church at 2864 Mississippi Ave. will host its MLK Day of Service from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday.
The Fort Worth Public Library will present King’s Path of Social Gospel, a virtual discussion led by Texas State University associate professor Dr. Dwight Watson. Register in advance for the event on Zoom.
This story was originally published January 15, 2021 at 5:48 PM.
