Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
More of what’s going around on this Martin Luther King Jr. Day of 2018:
-A peace march and rally will begin at 11:30 a.m. at St. James AME Church at Martin Luther King Drive and Hildebrand Street in downtown Asheville, followed at noon by a march to Pack Square to hear speakers on justice and peace.
-Civil rights activist Lewis Brandon will be the keynote speaker tonight (Monday, Jan. 15) at the annual Kenilworth Presbyterian Church’s celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Brandon is a native of Asheville and was the chief strategist in desegregating the lunch counters and movie theaters in Greensboro from 1960-1963. Brandon will discuss the Asheville/Greensboro civil rights connection and his legacy of activism. The event starts with a potluck dinner from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., with the program to follow. The church is located at 123 Kenilworth Road in Asheville. The evening will be hosted by Marvin Chambers a founding member of A.S.C.O.R.E. (Asheville Student Committee on Racial Equality) and an icon of the Civil Rights Movement in North Carolina.
-In Henderson County, Black Star Line Brewing Co. will host a day full of events, service, education, and conversations about the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “We’ll be watching films, eating together at each meal (pot luck style), having music and poetry, as well as service opportunities,” according to a press release.
-Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter Movement will discuss her book, When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir, on Friday, January 19, at the Rainbow Community Center, 60 State Street, Asheville. Warren Wilson Professor Rima Vesely-Flad, author of Racial Purity and Dangerous Bodies: Moral Pollution, Black Lives, and the Struggle for Justice will be in conversation with her. This is Cullors’ first appearance in Asheville. More:
The event, part of Malaprop’s Bookstore/Café’s Authors for Action! series, will be ticketed, with tickets available at Malaprops.com/event. Each ticket, priced at $10, will act as a coupon toward the purchase of either author’s book. Malaprop’s is also partnering with local organizations and activists whose mission is racial justice to distribute free tickets.
Cullors is an artist, organizer, and self-titled freedom fighter from Los Angeles, CA. She is a Fulbright scholar, public speaker, and an NAACP History Maker. She has been named a Civil Rights Leader for the 21st Century by the Los Angeles Times and listed among the World’s 100 Greatest Leaders by Fortune magazine. She is currently touring selected cities with her multimedia performance-art piece POWER: From the Mouths of the Occupied.
-Haywood Common, a new West Asheville restaurant, has opened on Haywood Road.
-S&W Artisanal, which includes a cafe, bar and upscale restaurant, has opened inside the S&W Building on Patton Avenue in downtown Asheville.
-From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Jan. 20, Asheville GreenWorks’ Hard 2 Recycle collection returns to West Asheville for its first collection of 2018. Weather permitting, the nonprofit’s partners will be accepting styrofoam, batteries, TVs, electronics, appliances, books, select Terracycle items and more. The collections will be taken at Park Terrace Center, 1298 Patton Ave.