Mayor Shelley Brindle’s Remarks at the 2021 MLK in Westfield

When thinking about my remarks for today's celebration, I contemplated what Dr. King would have to say about the unprecedented events of this past year -- a year when Black Lives Matter became a part of our daily vocabulary as incidents of police violence against people of color continue to be horrifying. I’m sure he would be dismayed by our lack of racial progress in so many areas since he was assassinated. But there is no doubt that Dr. King would have relished the Black Lives Matter movement, recognizing that his legacy of peaceful protest has been carried on by a new generation of young activists. I imagine he would have loved the fact that this nonviolent movement is powered not only by this younger generation, but strengthened by people of all ages and ALL colors, demanding long overdue justice and equality for all. Yes, indeed. Dr. King is surely looking down with pride upon the Black Lives Matter movement and its commitment to justice for those whose names we see erected on these handmade signs around us today. And contrast that with what he would have thought about the recent events at the US Capitol, when the President of the United States urged his followers, many of whom are white supremacists, to storm the cradle of our democracy in an effort to overturn the results of our presidential election -- an election whose outcome was determined primarily by an energized and engaged Black electorate ensuring that their voices were heard, in spite of ongoing unjust efforts to suppress their votes. Like us, Dr. King, who preached the gospel of nonviolence, would have been appalled and disgusted at this behavior. Violence, he said, is never the answer.