Speeches, awards and a march set here for Dr. King’s birthday

Princeton University plans major program for school children.

By: David Campbell
   The legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be commemorated locally with public addresses, a candlelight march and interfaith service, and music and awards.
   Today in Trenton, Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes will honor the memory of the slain civil rights leader with an hour-long program scheduled to begin at noon in the McDade Administration Building. The county executive’s talk is slated to be given in Room 211 of the building, which is located at 640 South Broad St.
   On Monday, the federal holiday in Dr. King’s honor, Princeton University will hold its annual King Day celebration. This event is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. in Richardson Auditorium of Alexander Hall on the university campus.
   The King Day celebration is free and open to the public. It will include an address by Yvonne Smith Segars, state of New Jersey public defender, as well as musical selections by CASYM Steel Orchestra, according to the university.
   Ms. Segars has served as state public defender since 2002, leading the office that provides attorneys for indigent clients in each of the state’s 21 counties. She has championed the establishment of drug courts in New Jersey, which give nonviolent drug offenders a chance to enter highly supervised treatment programs as an alternative to prison, and has lectured nationally on policies relating to criminal justice and drug treatment, according to the university.
   The university event will also include presentation of awards to essay, poster and video contest winners from area schools. Also, the university will present the first Martin Luther King Day Journey Award, which recognizes a member of the university faculty, staff or student body who best exemplifies Dr. King’s lasting legacy.
   This year’s contests for area school children were intended to commemorate the continuing journey of Dr. King’s work, according to the university.
   Students in grades 7 through 12 were invited to submit original essays or video presentations describing journeys in their own lives and how they may relate to the journey that Dr. King undertook during the civil rights movement.
   Fourth- through sixth-graders were invited to create posters depicting or symbolizing a personal journey the student has completed or is undertaking, and how it relates to the goals and lessons of Dr. King’s journey to improve civil and human rights.
   This year, 300 students from 19 schools submitted essays or videos, and almost 250 students from eight schools submitted posters. Many of the posters are expected to be displayed during the program, the university said.
   On Monday evening, a candlelight march and interfaith service also are planned in Princeton.
   The candlelight march is scheduled at 6:30 p.m. starting at the Martin Luther King memorial stone in front of First Baptist Church, located at the intersection of Paul Robeson Place and John Street in Princeton. The march will be about a mile long, and will finish at Trinity Church, located at 33 Mercer St.
   At 7 p.m., the annual Interfaith Service in honor of Dr. King will begin at Trinity Church. The Rev. Carlton Branscomb, pastor of First Baptist Church in Princeton, will be the preacher. Clergy and choirs from various faith traditions will participate in the leadership of the service.
   During the service, a freewill offering will be received, which will be split equally between the United Negro College Fund and the Coalition for Peace Action.
   The events are co-sponsored by the Princeton Clergy Association and the Coalition for Peace Action.
   For more information, call the coalition at (609) 924-5022 or the Rev. Peggy Hodgkins, president of the clergy association, at (609) 924-2277, ext. 102.
   Public schools, banks and state and local government offices will be closed Monday in observance of the federal holiday. The Princeton Public Library also will be closed.