For a King, Celebrate
As a child growing up in the 80s, “For a King, Celebrate” is indelibly stamped in my brain as THE Martin Luther King Day celebration song. It was a song that sang to my generation in a way we could hear. Not only did the King Dream Chorus and Holiday Crew feature the biggest stars in 80s hip-hop and R&B – New Edition (EEEEEKKKKK!), Fat Boys, Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, Full Force, Whitney Houston, even Menudo – it was national pop culture moment that centered Black youth in a way that I had never experienced before. Sure, the chorus included other popular musicians from our parents’ collection - Stephanie Mills, Teena Marie, the singers from Debarge and Kool and the Gang, but this song felt like it was just for us. If every generation has a song that was their community call to action, this was ours. I still get tearful when I listen to it - full of pride and purpose.
It was released in the week leading up to the first federal observance of Martin Luther King Day. That weekend, this song played on repeat on our local Black radio station and the video was nonstop on VH1. Even with all of this fanfare for the first federal holiday, it would be almost 20 years before Louisiana recognized MLK Day. So we continued to hold our community celebrations in the evening, after people got off from school and work. My mother made it a priority for us to pile into the community center for song, readings, speeches, and dance performances by local groups. For some years, mama organized a celebration in the breakroom at her job, so she and her co-workers could have a few moments together in community to reflect on Dr. King’s hard-fought legacy.
In middle school and high school, I remember vivid lunchtime conversations and structured classroom debates about whether or not we should have MLK Day as a school holiday. Arguments in favor of the holiday centered on respect and honor for Dr. King’s legacy, providing everyone a time to pause and reflect on what his leadership meant for the county. Arguments against often cited Dr. King’s education advocacy – wouldn’t he want us to be in school learning today? Bettering ourselves and our communities? When I was in undergrad, I was introduced the idea of MLK as a “day on” for service, again citing his ubiquitous statement “Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.” I’ve grown to appreciate all of the different ways that our communities come together on this day.
At Beloved, we value the practice of centering joy and justice. For young Rhonda, the joy practice was as important in my development as a social justice leader as the readings and intellectual analysis. And like “For a King, Celebrate,” it was a chance to see myself reflected in and belonging to the pop culture moment. When I think about all of the youth across the country who are marching, parading, dancing, singing, and contributing to MLK Day observations today, I hope they feel that same swell of pride in honoring of one of the greatest leaders in global history.
