aLL PhotoS on thiS Page are By the Skanner StaFF
the 2012 martin luther King Jr. Breakfast
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Quotables
A
ttendees at the breakfast had some great things to
say:
Louise Waters: I think they do a good job of keeping
up his birthday. And we’re in it every year. We celebrat-
ed seven years yesterday at Vancouver Avenue Baptist
Church.
Fay West: I’m just thankful that Martin Luther King’s
dream has come true. And we have came a long way but
we still have a long way to go. I’m just so thankful to be
here to observe the holiday.
Cathy: We lived when he was alive. It’s wonderful
watching him change the world and not just for African
Americans but for everybody. He’s really a universal
person. The more we learn about him, the more we listen
to what he says, the more it applies to today as well as
back home, the early part of the 20th century. It’s really
great that we honor him and everything that he did. Not
just for African Americans.
Page 6 The Portland Skanner January 25, 2012
george Bell: We’ve been citizens of Portland for
about 30 years. It’s a great city. We’ve seen a lot of
growth here. I use to be on the board for the Convention
Center. We always appreciate the people who attend the
Martin Luther King breakfast. It’s a very important sym-
bol for who we are and where we should be headed in the
future.
I think he (Dr. King) would still be concerned about the
equality issue and who has jobs, who is able to take care
of their families. What kind of help are they getting. He
would be very concerned about the living situation for all
citizens, especially African Americans.
karanja Crews (audio): I’m just truly thankful to be
here. Just honoring Dr. Martin Luther King. A drum
major for justice. It’s truly a blessing to be here and just
to honor this great man.
amos Smith, Senior Pastor at Meridian UCC: The
thing that always jumps out of me for some reason and
I’m not sure why, maybe because my name is Amos, but
I love that scripture from Amos 5:12. It says, “Let justice
roll on like a river and righteousness like a never failing
stream.” And I remember Dr. King used to use that a lot
in his speeches. And for me that’s an awesome scripture
because it has two parts. It has righteousness, which
begins with me and can be attained today. But justice,
which is always something that’s alluding us and is
going to be happening tomorrow. For me it kind of con-
tains the breadth of what faith is about and what faith in
Dr. King’s dream is about. Righteousness and justice. I
love that verse. Amos 5:12. It speaks to me. In my high
school everyone was putting down different quotations
in their senior year book. The quote I put down was
Amos 5:12. But I come from seven generations of
Amoses going back into Ireland so Amos is kind of this
thing you know. But Martin Luther King represents a
hope that we haven’t fully seen yet. Some people think
with Obama it’s here. It’s not here. We’ve got a long way
to go but the dream is alive.