About 100 people gathered inside the city’s Armory on North Cliff Street to remember the icon of nonviolence and civil rights — and to see a replica of a monument to King that will stand next to City Hall.
The Macedonia Baptist Church’s Rev. Alfred Smith called it a “magic moment.”
“We’re only the second city in the whole state of Connecticut to have one, which is a shame,” Smith said of the planned monument. “It will be a symbol of racial harmony, which is exactly what he stood for.”
A plaster replica of the bronze bust of king that will stand on a six-foot pedestal in Veterans Park was unveiled Wednesday.
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Throughout the event speakers and performers extolled King’s faith, his civil rights work, and the day he was killed in 1968.
Mayor David Cassetti said he remembered watching news reports of King’s assassination on TV and how even as a child understanding King’s importance.
The city has contributed $2,000 to a fund for the monument, Cassetti said.
About $5,500 has been raised so far, the mayor said. A total of $20,000 is being sought.
“I think this is very important,” Cassetti said. “Not for only African-Americans or Latinos, but for all people.”
As Valley NAACP Greg Johnson said, King’s example is needed more than ever.
“We’re still struggling,” Johnson said. “We’re celebrating, but we’re still struggling.”
Which is why he said the memorial to him will be significant in a city with a history dotted with tenser times.
“When it is unveiled, in a town that has had high profile racial tensions, this is a positive step in the right direction,” Johnson said.
The memorial will be made by Vasil Rakaj, an Ansonia resident and artist.
The original idea came from Brandon Edwards, an eighth-grader at Ansonia Middle School, who wrote an essay about the effort.
A classmate, Khmareon Cook, moved the audience with a rendition of “You Are My Strength,” one of a number of tributes to King’s faith.
The Macedonia Baptist Church’s Bruce Goldson hosted Wednesday’s event.
Other speakers and performers included Pastor Edward Barnes of Greater Evangel Temple, Macedonia Baptist Church’s Deacon Dave Gatison, New Haven resident Taevon Moore, and CEO David Morgan of TEAM Inc., which is helping in the fundraising effort.
State Sen. George Logan and state Rep. Linda Gentile presented a citation to Rakaj, a native of Albania whose prior work includes several statues of Mother Theresa.
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State Rep. Linda Gentile, State Sen. George Logan, and Mayor David Cassetti present a citation to Vasil Rakaj, an artist making a bronze bust of Martin Luther King Jr.
Logan quoted King urging others to ask “life’s most persistent and urgent question: what are you doing for others?”
Retired Ansonia High School Principal Terri Goldson also quoted King while urging those gathered to live by his example.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy,” Goldson said.
Rakaj said afterward it will take about six months to make the monument, but that it will be the product of a life’s work.
