Elgin exploring MLK’s enduring legacy in four-part series

The community is invited to a series of four panel discussions on the continuing legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on Wednesday, Jan. 14.

It will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the Meadows Community Rooms ABC at Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave. in downtown Elgin.

The programs will feature panel presentations and group discussions. The series is sponsored by Gail Borden Library and Elgin’s Human Rights Commission.

“We hope to engage people with a deeper look at Dr. King and his significance to our lives, getting past the ‘posters’ of both right and left,” said project organizer Rev. Michael Montgomery.

The programs include:

• Jan. 14: “King as an American Theologian and Religious Figure” with the Rev. David Daubert of Zion Lutheran Church in Elgin; Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein of Congregation Kneseth Israel in Elgin; and the Rev. Felicia LaBoy of First United Methodist Church in Elgin.

• Jan. 21: “King and Civil Rights” with Vincent Gaddis, Elgin Community College; Rev. Felicia LaBoy; and Dianha Ortega-Ehreth of Centro de Informacion

• Jan. 28: “King and Nonviolence” with Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein; Rev. Patrick Parks of Second Baptist Church in Elgin; Tony Rigano, retired lieutenant from the Elgin Police Department; and Rev. Katie Shaw-Thompson, executive director of PADS of Elgin

• Feb. 4: “King and Poverty” with Vincent Gaddis, Rev. Felicia LaBoy, and the Rev. Clinton Ward III of St. James AME Church.