Community Corner

Sharon Revisiting Martin Luther King's Legacy

Panel discussion planned for Wednesday night features both adults and students.

Chuck Walker Jr. has a question about such events as President Barack Obama's election, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the Occupy Movement.

"Is this also part of (Dr. Martin Luther) King's legacy?" Walker asks.

A "Martin Luther King's Legacy, and What it Means to Us Today" panel discussion at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the will ask such questions, Walker says.

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"I don't know how other people are about this," he said during a recent interview in the Sharon Community Television studios. SCTV will televise this event as part of the cable show "The Heart of the Matter," hosted by Walker.

"Some people have been absolutely candid, and said they've heard of Dr. King but they really don't know that much about him. We're getting further removed. I want to hear what they think his legacy is."

Find out what's happening in Sharonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The panel will include four members of the former Sharon MLK Committee, Walker, David Blocker, Lyda Peters and Janet Penn; Sharon Pluralism Network Coordinator Beth Hoke; and Sharon High School students Puya Sasani and Saima Ali. Penn is executive director of YouthLEAD, and Sasani and Ali are members.

Walker said Wednesday's panel discussion developed after the Council on Aging asked him to speak at its Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration this year.

Both the panel and the audience will be asked what relevance King's work has today, Walker said.

The dialogue will be "very objective. Nobody's going to get slammed or criticized," he said.

"I'm hoping that people will find that he was more than just a desegregation guy, and that he was truly a human rights guy," Walker said.

"I don't use the word 'guy' disparingly. He was a common man among all of us."

Light refreshments will be served. An RSVP to 781-784-8000 by today is strongly suggested for seating. Carpooling is encouraged.


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