Community shares what MLK Day means to them

As Martin Luther King Jr. Day arrives on Monday, it serves as more than just another mark on the calendars for this community — it carries echoes of remembrance, reflection, and a collective commitment to the dream that he so ardently envisioned, and this vision is not a distant echo, but instead a living force that advocates for equality, justice, and unity.

In remembering the legacy and impact of Martin Luther King Jr., some in the community are inspired by the work that King has done throughout his short life and use his messages as motivation to not only better themselves, but the community as a whole — which many feel have been forgotten by the local government.

So what does MLK Day mean to this community? These perspectives of our community leaders, educators, activists, and everyday residents give insight into just how much of a lasting legacy that King has left on all of us.

“As the daughter of a man who was raised in the segregated South and attended segregated schools, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is an important reminder of the extreme hardships people of African descent faced in this country, as well as the great triumphs we achieved,” said Uniondale Superintendent Monique Darrisaw-Akil. “It is a day of reflection, but also it is a day to acknowledge and commemorate the people of every race and creed who came together to foster a more equitable society for all people.”

“These aren’t just free days off,” the superintendent continued, “we let the Children know that these days off were hard earned and on this day, we remember the legacy of Dr. King, but we also remember the other countless men and women who fought for the civil liberties we now enjoy.”

Mary Bediako, the president of the Uniondale school board, added that King’s legacy has had an immense amount of influence on her, saying that what he fought for and believes has inspired her own work. “His legacy and what he stood for influences the work I do for my community, my country and as a human being who is trying to make life better for everybody else,” Bediako said.

David Adeoya, a financial advisor based in Uniondale, feels the same sentiment as Bediako. To him, MLK Day represents freedom, change, and a sense of profound impact — inspiring him to want to be as impactful as MLK and other civil rights leaders to create positive change throughout the Black community.

“As a Black man from a single parent household, all I have ever wanted to do was impact my community and actually help people who look like me use this country for their own benefit instead of it using them for theirs.”

Adeoya explains that in the financial field, there are not many who look like him representing Black people’s interests or even understanding their own culture or background. “My goal in business is to leave an impact, make a difference and educate my clients and my people on what's out there in terms of resources and how to navigate them when it comes to information, financial planning, and building generational wealth — which is something that we’ve historically lagged behind in and have been fighting to correct for years and years,” he said.

“What MLK day holds for me in terms of significance, goes back to my upbringing in the church,” said Mike Edwards, who grew up in Uniondale. “I would actually be responsible for some of the readings that occurred during our special Martin Luther King Mass.”

Edwards, whose mother’s side of the family originates from the south, says that his parents were teenagers when MLK got killed. “They remember exactly how the entire world reacted to such a tragedy,” he said. “For me, it's the recognition of such an important man in our history, somebody that was so responsible for helping Black people break through the barriers that would otherwise still exist. When you talk about today's leaders, and how far black people have advanced across all areas of this country, without people such as MLK at the top of that list, history would be definitively different.

Jeannine Maynard, co-facilitator for the Greater Uniondale Area Action Coalition, says that as someone who is of mixed race, MLK day holds a great significance for her. “My parents were an interracial couple in the 1950s, before the civil rights movement,” she explained. “I was about 7 or 8 when the March on Washington happened. I saw the energy, planning and the news firsthand. Both sides of my family stood up together for meaningful, positive change.”

Maynard believes that our country is desperate to listen to the words of MLK about unity and non-violence. “Nonviolence chooses love instead of hate and it believes that the universe is on the side of justice. The enemy is not the person, it's the ideology.”