Schedule of events
MONDAY 6 p.m.: “Peace Keepers.” Presented by Nation of Islam. Eastdale Village Community United Methodist Church 1403 Tunnel Blvd.TUESDAY 6 p.m.: “Black Lives Matter” with Alicia Garza. Presented by Unity Group and Concerned Citizens for Justice. First Baptist Church at 506 E. Eighth St.Wednesday 6 p.m.: Interfaith prayer service. Presented by the Unity Group. Mercy Junction Justice and Peace Center. St. Andrew’s Center at 1918 Union Ave.Thursday 9 a.m.: Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth. Second Missionary Baptist Church. 2305 E. Third St.Friday 6 p.m.: “Hidden Colors” with Dr. Booker T. Coleman. Presented by Mahmood Abdullah and Southside Market. Eastdale Village Community United Methodist Church. A $10 donation is requested.Saturday 9 a.m.: Unity Group’s 46th Annual Prayer Breakfast. Speaker: Honorable Erika L. Matthews McJimpsey, municipal judge. Greater Tucker Baptist Church at 115 N. Moore Road. A $25 donation is requested.Jan. 18 1:45 p.m.: Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Parade lineup at the intersection of North Moore Road and Brainerd Road between Waffle House and Ridgeview Baptist Church. 3 p.m.: Parade starts. One-mile march from intersection to Brainerd High School. Parade ends in parking lot near the football stadium. 5 p.m.: Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday concert with Phusion Dance Group, TruSaint & TureMog of Savior Gang and Big Mike Mic.
A faith-based group is proposing a conflict resolution center to alleviate violence in Chattanooga’s inner- city communities.
The center, proposed by the Nation of Islam, would be operated by a team of trusted people within the community including former lawyers, educators and former members of street organizations.
The Nation of Islam is hosting a discussion Monday about the center that is one of several events included in the Unity Group’s 46th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. birthday celebration. The event also includes an interfaith prayer service and a conference on youth.
“We’re hoping that everyone comes out, gets involved and becomes a part of the solution,” local Nation of Islam leader Kevin Muhammad said.
Other activities include a viewing of the documentary “Hidden Colors” and a prayer breakfast. Scheduled speaker Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, has had to reschedule, said Unity Group President Sherman Matthews.
Judge Erika L Matthews McJimpsey, a former Brainerd High School graduate, will speak at the breakfast at 9 a.m. Saturday at Greater Tucker Baptist Church on North Moore Road.
Matthews, who is McJimpsey’s father, said he hopes local youth are encouraged by seeing his daughter, who came from Chattanooga and graduated from an inner-city school. She is a municipal judge for the city of Spartanburg, S.C., the first black to hold that position.
The culminating celebration scheduled at 5 p.m. Jan. 18 at Brainerd High School includes Phusion Dance Group from Liburn, Ga., and music by TruSaint & Trumog of Savior Gang and Big Mike Mic.
Matthews said he wants those who attend the M.L. King festivities to get clarity about violence in their community and how to organize to prevent it.
The M.L. King kickoff event Monday will include a panel discussion about the economic and sociological effects of violence, including police brutality and the effects of blacks committing violence against themselves.
“This is a follow up to Justice or Else,” said Muhammad, referring to the theme of the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March held in October 2015, “when the minister [Louis Farrakhan] asked us to come back into our communities to make our communities a decent place to live.”
Despite the city’s efforts toward violence reduction, the number of shootings in the city was higher in 2015 than 2014, records show.
“We have got to figure out a call to action where we as a community can get involved, and not just on King week,” Matthews said. “We’ve got to do better by our kids. If we don’t do that, then we don’t have a future.”
“There is no tomorrow without today,” marks the theme of the Unity Group’s annual celebration.
For the first time in nearly half a century, the Unity Group’s M.L. King celebration will not be held downtown.
Instead the city will host a day of service on M.L.King Boulevard, inviting local residents to participate in fixing up the area. And the Unity Group will host its M.L. King Day culminating event at Brainerd High School. The Unity Group’s parade will be routed down North Moore Road from the Waffle House to Brainerd High School.
Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.