‘What’s our legacy?’ MLK’s work resonates in Charlotte to build connections, leaders

Making community connections and investing in future leaders to carry on the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy reverberated Monday during the MLK Holiday Celebration in uptown Charlotte.

Linda Alexander of Charlotte said she started coming to the breakfast event more than 20 years ago. She would bring her daughter, now 30 and a mother, so she would know the importance of the civil rights movement and what people went through to provide opportunities available to her.

“We need to remember the things that he (King) said and the things that he stood for,” she said. “And it’s a great way to connect with the community.”

The celebration of King and his life returned as an in-person event in the Crown Ballroom at Charlotte Convention Center, which sits along East Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

McCrorey YMCA has held the event since 1993. It was virtual the last two years because of the pandemic. It sold out this year, with 1,300 people attending in person, YMCA of Greater Charlotte spokeswoman Natalie Ramsey told The Charlotte Observer.

For Sydney Lash, 20, attending the fundraising event was personal. She grew up benefiting from YMCA programs.

“I know how important the youth activities are for development and guidance, especially if they (children) don’t get that at home,” said Lash, a Queens University junior majoring in public health and the social chair for the school’s Black Student Union. “I just think Black history is really important to share, so having this many people come out is really inspiring.”

This year’s theme for the MLK Holiday Celebration was “Equitable Leadership in Challenging Times.”

“It’s a way to continue to lift up Dr. King’s message and how it’s relevant to what the YMCA stands for and it’s still important today,” said Stan Law, president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Charlotte. Law said he grew up three miles from the McCrorey YMCA. The Y is named for Dr. Henry Lawrence McCrorey, president of Johnson C. Smith University from 1907 to 1947. He was the second Black man to serve as president of the private, historically Black college in Charlotte, according to the college’s website.

Moving forward with equity in Charlotte

To celebrate the diversity of Charlotte’s community, Law said, the Y chose a guest speaker panel of four women who answered three questions posed moderator Alex Giles from WBTV.

“What better way than to lift up women and the important role they play, not only in families but also in the community and organizations,” Law said.

In order for Charlotte to “move the needle” to grow equity, it must be intentional and invest in leadership development with more visible Black leaders, said Elizabeth Trotman, president and CEO of One Catalyst Consulting. As an example she noted The Mayor’s Racial Equity Initiative started by Mayor Vi Lyles, who was at Monday’s event.

“We have to really be intentional around building the pipeline for Black leaders and that looks like investment in leadership programs,” Trotman said.

The mayor’s initiative creates public and private partnerships throughout the city to prioritize corridors of opportunities and make direct investments in Charlotte’s communities that have historically been left behind, said Dr. Kinneil Coltman, executive vice president and chief community and social impact officer for Advocate Health.

Those partnerships are crucial to solve “deeply entrenched historical problems as a community to come out top.”

“We have a responsibility to make sure that we hold our promises true for those communities,” she said. “It all happens through partnerships.”

“It is really working with community, working with those you want to invest in and being able to do that work together,” said Krista Terrell, president of the Arts & Science Council.

It’s also important to make sure the people in those communities are part of the conversation, Terrell said.

“Make sure that their voices are center and have their perspectives to work alongside you as you’re doing this work,” Terrell said. “It is really working with community, working with those you want to invest in and being able to do that work together.”

Along with race, diversity includes gender, ethnicity and social economic statuses, said Rocio Gonzalez, executive director for Women’s Business Center of Charlotte.

“By increasing our understanding of different communities in Charlotte we’ll be able to build bridges and engage one another,” Gonzalez said.

Trotman challenged the community to think about the future: “When we look 50 years from now ... What’s our movement now? What’s our legacy?”

More about McCrorey YMCA

The McCrorey YMCA on Beatties Ford Road opened in 1936 as an all-Black facility during segregation.

Funds from the MLK Holiday Celebration provide access to YMCA programs in teen leader development and other programs for families in northwest Charlotte.

Law told the crowd that King laid the foundation for the Y to carry out its mission of diversity, equity and inclusion.

“His ability to bring it to the forefront allowed us all to have the conversation we need going forward,” Law said. “There’s much to be done. With racial, political and social unrest that have increased over the last several years, it’s important that we continue to evolve, continue to focus on his message and continue to have dialogue.”

The breakfast was one of several events held in Charlotte that honored King including cultural activities at Harvey B. Gantt Center in uptown, a unity march and concert.

This story was originally published January 16, 2023 at 3:47 PM.