Dreams can come true, even in a city that has suffered from nightmares.

Jerry Madden of Avondale closes his eyes in prayer with his children Jamel, 9, and Noelle, 11, during an observance on Fountain Square. (Steven M. Herppich photo) | ZOOM |

        Thousands of Tristate residents attended community and church celebrations Monday that commemorated Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Organizers said the crowds were larger than in previous years.

        The events appealed to people partly because of Cincinnati's riots and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, said event leaders such as Maxwilliam J. SaekiLewis, president of the Martin Luther King Jr. Coalition.

        “Our gathering here in the heart of the city is not a protest, but it is a remarkable demonstration ... of our deepest respect; a demonstration that ' he said at a rally at Fountain Square.

People march up Vine Street to Music Hall for a program in honor of Dr. King. (Steven M. Herppich photo) | ZOOM |

        Former U.S. congressman and Congressional Black Caucus member William Gray III urged the audience at the 12th annual King Day breakfast at the Hyatt Regency downtown to not “let the problems overshadow the possibilities.”

        Mr. Gray is now president and CEO of the United Negro College Fund.

        Said Marian Spencer, the city's first black female vice mayor and a longtime civil rights activist, “Seek the justice that gives us all fulfillment. ... Our lives will be better when we learn how to share.”

        Mrs. Spencer, 82, of Avondale received a lifetime achievement award at the breakfast.

Members of the Arts Consortium Youth Chorale sing during the 12th annual King Day breakfast. (Dick Swaim photo) | ZOOM |

        Angela Leisure, mother of 19-year-old Timothy Thomas, who was fatally shot in April while fleeing police, received a Dreamcatcher award Monday for speaking out against violence.

        The Consortium Youth Chorale gave a performance that brought the audience of several hundred to their feet.

        “I feel a new sense of vigor,” said Joe Wuen, 33, of Montgomery, who said it was his second time at the King breakfast.

        Shortly afterward, hundreds thronged Fountain Square and later marched to Music Hall, clogging Vine and Elm streets.

Marian Spencer receives a lifetime achievement award by J. Stephen Dobbins. (Dick Swaim photo) | ZOOM |

        Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken urged the audience to “keep their eyes wide open” for changes to come in Cincinnati.

        “There is a promise ... of new beginnings,” he said, “of change and of opportunity. We have a new City Council, we are going to get a new city manager, and we are going to have a new positive direction.”

        The multiracial and multidenominational Martin Luther King Jr. Chorale performed. Ed Rigaud, president of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, told the near-capacity crowd that if the Rev. Dr. King were alive today, he would weep at our nation's state.

        “He would be so sad his people have not yet reached the promised land, that the legacy of slavery is still with us and that his wonderful dream has not yet been realized,” Mr. Rigaud said.

        Steven Reece, a Cincinnati businessman and activist, said Cincinnati could lead this country's struggle for freedom by eliminating the myth of black inferiority.

        “Each of us must have the courage and moral conviction to treat each person as a full human being,” he said.

        “Whenever whites and blacks stand together for justice, things change.... Let's cut the foolishness out. Let's love one another. Let's change our attitude.”

        In Butler County, some 200 people marched through downtown Hamilton as the Rev. Dr. King's “I Have a Dream” speech resounded from a van's loudspeakers. Marchers filled the pews at Payne Chapel AME Church, where the Rev. Anne Henning-Byfield, a Detroit minister, urged support of black-owned businesses and called for black college graduates to stay to help the Tristate.

        “After taxes, money is leaving your community,” she said.

        “Dr. King didn't see what we saw. He didn't see the proliferation of technology. He never saw the number of African-Americans in white universities like Miami University. But what he did see was an opportunity for people to work together.”

        Undrell Thomas, a Forest Park resident and member of Payne church since 1995, said the turnout was amazing: “I'm surprised to see so many young kids coming out.”

        Northern Kentucky residents attended several King Day events.

        About 30 people reflected on another giant in human rights, Harriet Tubman. Newport resident Patricia Fann, 54, portrayed Tubman, who helped lead 300 slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad, during a performance at the World Peace Bell in Newport.

        Springfield Township resident Terrie Kemper, a home schooling parent, said she brought her children to experience history.

        “The connection in history is that Martin Luther King Day doesn't just represent the civil rights (movement) in the '60s, but back before the Civil War and continuing today,” she said.

        Tom O'Neill, Cassie Carothers and Stephenie Steitzer contributed.

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