LOUISVILLE, Ky. — On the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Louisville came together to celebrate Keepers of the Dream: A Community Celebration of Dr. King's vision.
"The arts can be a powerful tool to bring much needed change," Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said.
Gov. Beshear was joined by Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and various other city leaders in celebrating Black joy and excellence through art.
"In a world where people are not judged by the content of their skin or their religion but by the content of their character," Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said.
"It gives a representation, not only to the struggle but but the resilience and the joy of what it is to truly be a Black person in America," Metro Councilman Philip Baker said.
Louisville married couple Linda and Ron Jacobs were some of the many who gathered into the Kentucky Center for Performing Arts, and remember the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s.
"Well I remember Martin Luther King {Jr.} since I was a young kid," Ron Jacobs said. "You know I actually remember starting to watch him back in the 50s."
"Watching them talk about Black people and having the freedom and {equality} for of everybody else," Linda Jacobs said.
Kentucky Senator Gerald Neal also remembers the movement--one he played an integral part in in the Derby City.
"I ended up in jail quite a few times during that time of struggle and it was in this general area," he said.
A longtime inductee of the NAACP Civil Rights Hall of Fame (2001), he received the Freedom Award during Sunday's event, recognizing his work over more than half a century serving marginalized communities.
"When I revisit this, I go back in time to think where we were then and what the struggle was then and where we are now and what the struggle is now," Sen. Neal said.
As we approach a day to honor progress, it also serves as a solemn reminder of the progress we have yet to reach
"We still have a lot of work to do as far as fighting prejudice and discrimination, so as we progress, we can get better as we go along," Ron Jacobs said.
"Even with the problems, it's starting to get better, No one can say it's just like it was 50 years ago," Terrance Jacobs, Ron Jacob's son, said.
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