At Chicago's Martin Luther King Jr. Day Breakfast, commitment to protecting rights is affirmed

Carolyn Stein, Chicago Tribune on Jan 20, 2025

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CHICAGO — Chicago civil rights leaders and Illinois politicians reaffirmed their dedication to protecting education and immigrants rights Monday morning amid reports that President Donald Trump could begin his crackdown on illegal immigration this week with raids in Chicago.

Close to a thousand people gathered Monday at the 35th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast, hosted by the organizations PUSH for Excellence and Rainbow PUSH Coalition. Both organizations were founded by the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr., who worked alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights movement. Attendees at the breakfast included Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Illinois House Speaker Emmanuel “Chris” Welch and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker.

The breakfast, held annually on MLK day, honors the memory and legacy of Dr. King as well as the work of Rev. Jackson. Illinois first recognized Dr. King’s birthday as a legal holiday on Sept. 17, 1973, a decade before the federal government declared the third Monday in January as a national holiday.

“Today is one of the greatest days in the American calendar. And that is the day that we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous. “And I think we can agree for everybody in this room, that is what today is about.”

This year the annual breakfast falls on Donald Trump’ s presidential inauguration, which some civil rights leaders acknowledged as ironic considering Trump’s divisive rhetoric and policies.

“I think the irony of this day is not just to show how ironic life can be, but it’s really to challenge us,” Karen Freeman-Wilson, CEO of the Chicago Urban League, said at news conference before the breakfast. “And my question to you, as we stand here with all of this power, with all of this intellect, with all of this love: Is anybody afraid that we’re coming?”

Throughout the event, civil rights leaders invoked a question Dr. King asked in his last book: “Where do we go from here?”

“As we honor the life and legacy of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I join you in asking, ‘Where do we go from here,’ in order to move closer to the promise of justice and equity for all,” Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton said at the news conference.

To answer that question, speakers called upon attendees to respond together to attacks on education, workers’ rights and immigrant rights from the Trump administration.

“The fight for our families, for our communities is not just about fighting for one group – it is about defending all families, all communities,” said Revered Tanya Lozano, founder of Healthy Hood. “The attack on Latino families through deportation is not isolated. It is a continuation of a long history of separating families and attempting to erase the histories of resistance that have always lived in our communities.”

Other speakers echoed this sentiment throughout the event.

“Across America, our most vulnerable communities are about to contend with new uncertainty about their future,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “To all who are being made to feel unsafe and reduced by a takeover of the federal government by those who seek to enrich themselves at the expense of the good people of Illinois, we will not stand idly by,” Pritzker said.

To reaffirm the state’s dedication to defending against the next administration, Pritzker noted numerous actions the state has already taken, such as prohibiting book bans, focusing vocational and workforce training to more communities of color and paying Black doulas and midwives to help ensure that Black women can give birth in their own communities.

“We did all this in the state of Illinois, and we’re going to fight like hell to keep the crazies in Washington from taking it away from us,” Pritzker said.

The uncertainty around the next Trump administration did not dampen the celebration towards Dr. King and Reverend Jackson, which saw uplifting performances by The United Voices Youth Choir and Zoie Amani Reams, star of the Lyric Opera’s Production of Blue.

“When I was 14, I met Reverend Jackson,” said Jealous, who went on to speak about the various rallies and campaigns he got to work on with Jackson, including getting to sit next to Reverend Jackson while watching Kamala Harris speak at the Democratic National Convention last year. “I’ve met so many of [Dr. King’s] lieutenants, and they all practice the same tradition as Reverend Jackson.”

To honor the work of both Dr. King and Reverend Jackson going, Jealous called upon attendees to do everything they can to “keep the tradition going.”

“Be like Jesse Jackson and reach out to the young and lift them up,” Jealous said. “Be like Dr. King and recognize one day you win the civil rights next and the next day you go to work, as he did, to get rid of the Europe-only preference for migrations in this country. It’s all about a human family we are serving.”

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