My service for Martin Luther King Jr. Day was simple: to stand on a small landing in a winding, marble-lined stairwell, welcome attendees, and offer assistance to any who needed help with the steps.
The old State Theater, an aging yet still-elegant downtown Johnstown movie house, was hosting a Celebration of Dr. King’s life and legacy, featuring leaders of the black community, a Johnstown native son who now is a weekend meteorologist for a Pittsburgh TV station as well as a Baptist pastor, and ensembles of the Johnstown Symphony Orchestra.
The program attracted a large, diverse crowd. African Americans of all ages mixed with typical Symphony patrons, who tend to be older and Caucasian. Dress trended toward casual with a number of people wearing Martin Luther King Jr. t-shirts, proclaiming the program’s theme: “The Urgency of Now.”
Close to 400 attendees filled an ornate theater flanked with bas-relief faux arches, topped with rectangular panels containing grillwork. A large medallion dominated the ceiling, rimmed with a decorative sculpted plaster pattern, and centered with rich burgundy fabric surrounding a speaker column.
Held the day before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, this program celebrated his life, renewed his commitment to civil rights for all people and showcased the culture of his people. The pastors-led program was God-centered with prayers, scripture, music and uncompromising calls for change.
In such a setting, the Pledge of Allegiance’s closing words of “with liberty and justice for all” carried poignant meaning and beautifully introduced the opening lines of a beloved Black anthem which immediately followed:
Lift every voice and sing,/
‘Til earth and heaven ring,/
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
That this was the second year of an MLK Day collaboration with the Johnstown Symphony Orchestra shouldn’t surprise anyone who is familiar with the JSO’s Music Director James Blachly. One of his passions is finding ways to empower and connect with a variety of audiences.
Among the maestro’s interests is cataloging and performing works written by African Diaspora composers. The pieces the JSO ensembles performed in this program all were written by black artists.
The keynote speaker was the Rev. Brian Hutton, Jr., a Johnstown native who has the dual vocation of being a Baptist pastor and the weekend meteorologist at WTAE-TV 4 in Pittsburgh. Rev. Hutton’s words were measured but challenging as he recalled Dr. King’s most-famous speech.
“Sixty years ago Martin Luther King Jr. dared to dream,” recalled Rev. Hutton. “And while they killed the dreamer, they didn’t kill the dream.”
Progress has been made, he said, but there’s still a lot of work to do. And he criticized those “complaining most loudly who sit on their ‘do-nothing’ and do nothing.”
“What can you do to help fix a problem that you see around you every day?” Rev. Hutton asked, observing that sometimes people try to take on something that may be too big, then fail and become discouraged.
Instead of trying to take too big a bite, Rev. Hutton said, “be a nibbler” tackling a challenge piece by piece. There’s a role for everyone to play. “That is the greatest legacy of the Civil Rights movement.”
Don’t settle for the status quo, because there are always people in the margins and often those in the margins become scapegoats, he noted, adding that at one point we all were in the margins.
“Everyone should have a seat at the table,” concluded Rev. Hutton. “How do we get a seat? By nibbling away at the status quo.”
Resuming my place in the stairwell after the program to thank people for coming and direct them to the refreshments, I reflected that my simple service didn’t even amount to a nibble. But “Lift Every Voice and Sing” was a reminder that we all share the challenge.
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
