ShawneeDispatch.com

Monday was more than just another federal holiday at the First Christian Church in Bonner Springs. The church, 148 N. Nettleton, put on its 18th annual Martin Luther King Day celebration with music, speakers and refreshments.

The program began at 1 p.m. with a spirited recital of "This Little Light," in which the crowd, mostly black and about a quarter white, sang along with the Singspiration trio, led by Regina Stillman, of Restoration Ministries of Kansas City, Mo.

Dr.Norge W. Jerome (right) was the moderator on a panel discussion Monday during the MLK Day celebration.

Other music in the program included the bell choir from the First Christian Church of Leavenworth, a male gospel trio called Quietly Speaking, and a local women's quartet, The Glory Generations.

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Read Dr. King's speeches and other archived material at the Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute, Standford University

The King Center, Atlanta, Ga.

Cedric Saunders of Kansas City, Kan., provided additional entertainment, impersonating the scientist and educator George Washington Carver. Saunders' portrayal of the African-American hero, in a lab coat, tie, spectacles, and Carvers' characteristic high-pitched voice, drew several laughs from the children in the audience.

Bonner Springs seventh-grader Cameron Thompson read aloud King's "I Have a Dream" speech, and for his efforts received two rounds of applause.

What could be called the meat of the program, a panel discussion among local community leaders, helped close the event. The panel included Norge W. Jerome of Shawnee, a philanthropist and nutritional anthropology researcher; Jesse Milan, professor emeritus at Baker University and former state NAACP president; Rae Sedgwick, psychologist and lawyer; the Rev. Jim Blair; and Pauline Thompson, who marched with King. The five discussed "Implementation of Dr. King's Dream Today," mostly drawing on their personal experiences.

Blair said he believed racial profiling by police to still be a problem, saying "100 percent of the people we saw stopped by police on the way here were black." Blair also condemned what he described as the imposition of religious doctrine in public schools.

In an apparent rebuke to the Kansas school board and others who advocate teaching "intelligent design" in public schools, the reverend said, "We can't have peace if our schools impose religious indoctrination. With character, you don't need to impose your will."

Milan told of his experience trying to cash a traveler's check at a California bank, which refused to honor the check even though he presented his driver's license and another identification card. Echoing Blair's warning that discrimination is subtle, Milan said "it's so smooth you don't know it's happening." He also voiced his doubts as to the effectiveness of integration on eliminating racism. Milan also issued a challenge to the audience: to urge the Bonner Springs City Council to pass an ordinance banning housing discrimination based on familial status. Milan said the people most frequently discriminated against were "women with children."

Sedgwick advocated the hiring of more minority teachers in the Bonner Springs-Edwardsville School District on the grounds that students who suffer racial discrimination otherwise may not have anyone they feel comfortable telling at school.

Jerome told of her experience on the board of an organization that advocated for the independence of senior citizens. Showing that discrimination comes in many forms, and sometimes where one least expects it, the organization fired an administrative assistant just because she was in her 80s. Jerome said she fought to ensure the woman got fair severance compensation, and then quit the board.

Kay Shevling, organizer of the program, said the refreshments served after the program, strawberries and other fruits, were inspired by Jerome, who recommends eating foods of many different colors.

The program received warm praise from audience members afterwards.

"It was great," said Alertha Wright, of Shawnee. "I enjoyed the whole thing, especially the panel."

Christopher Dixon, a Bonner eight-grader, likewise said the program was good, and cited the King speech recitation by Cameron Thompson as his favorite part.