Frontiers International is again hosting the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Breakfast in Springfield. The event will be held on January 16, 2023 in the Wyndham Springfield City Center at 8:30 a.m. I sold $30 tickets to club members for the event. The deadline for purchasing tickets was January 3. You may email me (ahw128@gmail.com) if you have any questions about ticket availability. Please remember that we are not having our regular evening meeting at Maldaners on January 16.
We have two tables reserved for our Rotary Club members who purchased tickets, and I have some seats at my table as well. Our Rotary club is helping sponsor the event with an advertisement in the program.
The keynote speaker is Dr. Gerald A. McWorter (Professor Alkalimat) (image on leftt) of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He will present "An Oasis of Freedom and Justice is the Dream." Dr. McWorter is the great great grandson of Free Frank McWorter, founder of New Philadelphia, the first town legally set up by an African American. After earning a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Chicago, he has taught and lectured at many institutions including Fisk University, University of California, University of Peking, and University of Ghana. His activism in the Civil Rights Movement included being the Chairperson of SNCC in Chicago and working with Dr. King during his activities in Chicago. He is currently Professor Emeritus of African American Studies and Information Science at the University of Illinois. Recent books include New Philadelphia (2018), The History of Black Studies (2021), and The Future of Black Studies (2022). His next book will the The History and Future of Malcolm X. I hope to see you there!