(dramatic music) (uplifting music) - Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.

You know, the right path to change is necessary, but it must first start with the change we wish to seek.

The kind of change communities need during challenging times has peace at its core.

We've been on this path for a long time, but it is necessary because the work is never ending.

So many people have helped us to get to where we are now, and it's going to take many, many more for us to continue to evolve in the right direction.

The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King was a major influence of change, especially in Black, Brown, disenfranchised, and hurting communities.

And his spirit is still alive.

He believed in equality and handled difference with tranquility.

With us, with his guidance, the path to change is ambitious.

Gandhi, who was one of Dr. King's influencers said, "You must not lose faith in humanity.

Humanity is an ocean.

If a few drops in the ocean are dirty, the ocean doesn't become dirty.

That just means we need to work harder."

It is very unfortunate that some do not embrace peace and are still filled with hatred.

But positive change, yes, positive change, doesn't come from bystanders, it doesn't come from violence either.

It comes from people who will stand up, action that includes us speaking up.

Our voices have such an impact, because the more people speak up and stand up, the more the influences spread across our world.

Once we get the change we wish to see, we must work hard to maintain it.

We have to be willing to work hard so our generation and the generation after them and the generation after them can abide in peace.

Let us remember, like Gandhi said, "Our greatest ability is not to change the world, it's to change ourselves."

(uplifting music) (match burning) (slow organ music) (upbeat gospel music) (audience clapping and cheering) - [Malcolm X] It's freedom for everybody or freedom for nobody.

- [Gandhi] In the midst of darkness, light persists.

- [Martin Luther King Jr.] I have a dream today.

(audience cheering) ♪ Amazing grace ♪ - [MC] Welcome to the Apollo Theater.

(audience clapping and cheering) (upbeat gospel music) - Hi, I'm Governor Kathy Hochul.

I'm honored to be part of New York State's celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The theme of this year's celebration is "Paths to Change."

Dr. King exemplifies the painstaking work that it takes to move us forward as a society and bring about real progress.

He famously observed that the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice, through his words and through his actions, his teachings of justice, peace, equality, and love.

Like many, I've personally taken comfort in the words of Dr. King who has been a guiding influence in my life.

When I was just a little girl, I'd go to the library and read a series about famous Americans, and one of them was Dr. King.

I was inspired by what he accomplished at such a young age.

He forced Americans to see the righteousness of peaceful protest in the quest for justice.

And it's up to each of us to carry on that legacy and do everything in in our power to build a better, more just society.

We need to make Dr. King's dream of true justice and equality come alive today so the next generation inherits a world where it's no longer a dream, but indeed the reality for everyone.

We all have to do our power to bend the moral arc of the universe towards justice.

That is the spirit we must hold in our hearts as we move New York forward together.

Let's reflect today, celebrate today, serve today, and thank Dr. King and his family for the ultimate sacrifice.

Thank you.

- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, "The beauty of genuine brotherhood and peace is more precious than diamond, silver, or gold."

Good morning and welcome.

Thank you Governor Hochul for those inspiring words, and thank you to Pastor Darius Pridgen for sharing that beautiful message along Buffalo's Waterfront Park to start our day in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. My name is Reverend Mashona Walston, senior minister at the First Church in Albany.

Founded in 1642, it is the oldest church in upstate New York.

Today I am overjoyed, not only to welcome you to my church, but to be here as your host for the official New York state tribute to Dr. King.

Over the next hour, we'll travel throughout this great state to visit with your fellow New Yorkers bringing Dr. King's message to life.

In the the spirit of this year's theme, "Paths to Change" we'll pay tribute to Dr. King through those keeping his dream alive today.

We begin the program with something near and dear to any reverend's heart, a church choir.

Here to set the stage from inside the sanctuary at the First Church in Albany, I give you the 2023 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ensemble.

(slow organ music) ♪ Walk in the light ♪ ♪ Beautiful light ♪ ♪ Come where the dewdrops of mercy shine bright ♪ ♪ Shine all around us by day and by night ♪ ♪ Jesus, the light of the world ♪ ♪ Walk in the light ♪ ♪ Beautiful light ♪ ♪ Come where the dewdrops of mercy shine bright ♪ ♪ Shine all around us by day and by night ♪ ♪ Shine all around us by day and by night ♪ ♪ Shine all around us by day and by night ♪ ♪ Jesus, the light of the world ♪ (smooth funky music) - Mahatma Gandhi is widely recognized as one of the 20th century's greatest spiritual leaders who spent his life forging a path to peace.

According to Gandhi, peace meant walking with truth and justice, patience and compassion, courage and loving kindness.

In a small town in upstate New York lies a monument with a storied history, one of only two that exist in this country, and one of only 80 in the world.

Forged in the Buddhist faith and designed to inspire peace, the Grafton Peace Pagoda is a destination for visitors from many nations and all walks of life.

It is also the home of Jun Yasuda, a Buddhist nun who has spent her life walking the path of peace.

(birds chirping) (bell gonging) - 1978, I came United States because Native American people standing up to the human right, Native right.

All the time Native American people had no freedom to prayer and lots of control, fishing right, water right.

So many survival skill government controlled.

So Native American people decided to walk, San Francisco to Washington, DC.

They called "Longest Walk."

So I came to United States, walk with Native Indian friend.

When I connect to African American friend, I realized I have to more pray to what's happening African American people.

And I realize African American people more suffering daily issues.

And the most difficult issue is many African American families are suffering under the prison issues.

So that part of the way I decided to walk to prison walk.

So minister said, "We like to visiting your Grafton Peace Pagoda is a Sunday service.

So is okay we come to our Sunday service time to come to your Peace Pagoda?"

I said, "Wow, very honoring."

So they came to the temple, and the end of service time, minister asking, "What is this big drum?

Can you offering prayer?"

So I said, "That is our part of prayer way."

So I start drumming, boom, boom, boom, boom.

And that time all African American friend in the temple, everybody start following rhythm like this.

Some people like this, some people like this, some people like this, and I so touching.

So I more realized how African American friend is amazing character or a sense more than us to connect beyond universal.

And they understand this drum more than me.

They understand our prayer more than me.

So I very honoring this happening.

And this is path with nonviolence.

No killing, no fight, no violence, symbol is a Peace Pagoda.

And this kind of spiritual movement is start, connected to Mahatma Gandhi way.

Because our Buddhist mission is nonviolence, Martin Luther King is our leader, our navigator for nonviolence way in United States, so I follow.

(dramatic music) - Although the life of Mahatma Gandhi was cut short, his influence over Dr. King cannot be understated.

As a young man, the writings of Gandhi would begin shaping the philosophy of Dr. King during his years at seminary school.

Like Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. understood that nonviolence was much more than simply agreeing not to attack your enemies.

It was about using peaceful protests as a means to affect social change at a time when America needed love and understanding more than ever.

Dr. King wrote that the ideals of nonviolence practiced by Gandhi became his guiding light and played a large role in King's victory over bus segregation during the Montgomery Boycott of 1956.

In 1959, Dr. King had the opportunity to visit India where he learned more about Gandhi the man.

Dr. King said, "To other countries, I may go as a tourist, but to India I come as a pilgrim."

During his month-long visit, he spoke at universities and public meetings, had the opportunity to meet Gandhi's son, and at some point in his travels stayed at Mani Bhavan, the Jewel House, which served as Gandhi's home in Mumbai for 17 years and was the epicenter of India's struggle for freedom.

Today, Gandhi's message continues to guide those, like the Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence in Rochester, New York, who are looking for ways to resolve conflict without resorting to violence.

(gentle music) - I think sometimes people want a perfect answer to our modern forms of violence.

So when we introduce the idea of nonviolence, people are skeptical because it's not perfect, but I view it as harm reduction.

And nonviolence needs discipline.

It takes a lot of discipline to be still while someone is hurting you, while someone is hurling insults at you.

Gandhi is highly disciplined.

He is so disciplined that when he does his work with other people, it looks effortless.

Martin Luther King and Gandhi had a lot of similarities, and even though they had separate belief systems, within their belief system was this idea of, like, love, specifically beloved community.

King said that Gandhi's principles of nonviolence is the only path to freedom from oppression for Americans at that time.

So even though they use different words, beloved community kind of stretches across it, and through that is like the sense of spiritual love for humankind.

The institute is like a community center in the Plymouth-Exchange neighborhood.

We often do a lot of workshops centered around conflict awareness, conflict management.

And also we set up systems for feedback for the community so that people could find better ways to talk to each other and resolve their conflicts without violence.

And have people feel comfortable with the idea that conflict is a normal and natural part of life, and there are multiple options to work through conflict.

I would love to see more people come and meditate here, to use the labyrinth here, to access this space for what it really is, is, like, a place to be listened to, to be heard, to be seen and valued as a human being.

If Gandhi was around today, Gandhi would be a sort of elder that is super necessary for this continuance of nonviolent movement, this continuance of building a culture of courage for people to stand up against oppression in a variety of ways, but especially in ways that are nonviolent, that sometimes put them in danger, but they do it anyway because they know that's the right thing to do.

(upbeat funky music) - You often hear people refer to the Apollo Theater as the soul of American culture, and who could argue with that?

Since 1934, the theater has been a catalyst for new artists, many of whom would become household names: Ella Fitzgerald, Sammy Davis Jr., Luther Vandross.

It has also acted as a creative powerhouse in projecting a pathway for the African American narrative in Harlem, the city of New York, and the world.

- The Apollo Theater is a home first and foremost, right?

It is a home for Black culture, but it's a home for American culture.

It is a space for convening.

It is a town hall, it is a sanctuary, it is a stage under which some of the most amazing performances will happen.

It is a home under which audiences and artists sit equally on the same playing field.

The Apollo Theater is magic.

The arts have always been an important agent for change in this country, particularly because the arts allow you to dream.

So the Apollo Theater has provided a platform for changemakers simply because we have always been a space of opportunity.

If you think about Amateur Night, for instance, it represents the highest form of ourselves, right?

Is that you can walk in as a regular individual and step on this stage, the same stage that Aretha Franklin, James Brown, young Etta James, and all of a sudden somehow you feel exalted, somehow you feel special.

I think the Apollo is creating a path of change for the new generation the same way that we have created for many decades.

And that is providing a platform, providing a platform for artists, providing a platform for young people through our education programs.

Apollo Theater Academy is something that's really special and super close to my heart because it is a training program for high school students between the ages of 13 and 17.

And we get students from all over the city, and they come to the Apollo in order to get trained not for careers on the stage, but for careers behind the stage, right?

And behind the camera.

So we're training designers, we're training producers, we're training technicians.

We've now also started a digital curriculum under which we're training folks how to create content, digital content as well.

We want to make sure... And these are primarily young people of color, which we are underrepresented in this industry and in the entertainment industry as a whole.

This is a real opportunity now, not only to teach people about the creative arts, but it's allowing and creating a culture of producers of tomorrow.

One of our major focuses right now is that we are obviously an 88-year-old institution, and one of our main focuses is how do we move this institution that's held in such reverence to an institution of relevance?

That's always very important, and I believe King believed the same.

King said that, "We are not makers of history, we are made by history."

So when I think about the Apollo and what we are doing to move forward, it's about using the history and our legacy and those artists to help bolster us forward into a new tomorrow.

- Brooklyn-based artist Tanda Francis is a marvel.

Her public art, which includes monumental African heads, are simply breathtaking.

Tanda's work is inspired by the ritual and customs rooted in the spiritual and ancestral past of the diasporic African people who are often underrepresented in public art.

- The fact that I'm doing the work that I'm doing is evidence that there's a transition in what we want to see in the public space, in the art world is we're transitioning to showing the reality of who we are as a people, as a collective, like a community.

We're showing more voices, and it's great to be a part of that.

Especially in a country like this in particular to have, like, sort of an African connection in this country is amazingly important because this country was built by the people of who at one point were not shown at all and definitely not in the public space.

We gotta, like, plug into reality, and, like, the world is big and includes a lot of people who make this country, like, roll.

And back in Martin Luther King's day, like, there's no way, like, you know, say, these pieces that I have, it wasn't at all a possibility.

We wanna reach people who are, like, not necessarily going into an art gallery.

You know, you wanna set a stage.

That's what this is.

Public art is kind of like setting a stage.

As I'm doing it, it's clear that this is something that you don't see out there.

We see a lot of, like, you know, white men on horses, and what I'm doing is a little bit different breath.

With the public, one interesting thing about the pieces are that they are figurative.

I do intentional... Like, the gaze of the the eyes to the public is also something that is...

It kind of catches your eyes.

You see this presence looking back at you and it kind of draws you in.

I wanna like (snaps) stop people a little bit in their tracks a little bit and connect to that energy that I'm putting out there.

And then there's a conversation around that.

And I've heard a lot of people saying, "Oh, my God.

That looks like me.

Look, her nose looks like my cousin."

A lot of, "That looks like me."

That's the heart of what I was doing, connection, ancestrally, I believe even to myself.

The piece that connects to me most is interesting because the original piece that it was based on was "Altar Ego," a piece that I, at the time, kept on my altar, essentially putting my face, African features, my nose, my eyes, like, my cheek, everything.

I knew that was gonna go 14 feet tall.

There's a heaviness to that, but if I make it like an alter ego, I can really, like, express in a different way.

And also knowing that I'm, like, a regular person, someone like me on the street, like a regular person, but, like, superhero proportions.

So when I'm doing these pieces, I'm responding to something, sometimes personal, sometimes just, like, spiritual that I don't always define or try to define everything of it, and they have this connection to my heritage, and, like, there's an African presence.

Essentially what I'm dealing with is I'm drawing people in to experience humanity.

If you can somehow take a moment and just, like, remind ourself of that, that's key to me.

(upbeat funky music) - "We need more light about each other.

Light creates understanding, understanding creates love, love creates patience, and patience creates unity."

Those are the words of someone who knew all about walking a path of perseverance, Malcolm X, a minister and human rights activist and a prominent figure during the civil rights movement.

Today, the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center in New York continues to honor the legacies of both Malcolm X and his late wife, Dr. Betty Shabazz in supporting social, racial, and global justice movements.

- As an educator, it is important to me that young people have an opportunity to learn and also be inspired with accurate information.

And as a child, my mother made sure, because she was inspired and influenced by her husband, she made sure when she raised her six daughters, that we learned about the significant contributions that Africa and the diaspora made to the world, that women made to the world, and that Islam made to the world.

And so, we grew up with a solid sense of our identity.

The more that I traveled outside of my household, outside of the protective wing of my mother's, I discovered that there were a lot of young people who didn't have that opportunity, who didn't know anything good about their heritage.

And so, my work is a reflection of self-love, of encouragement.

This is actually the last place that I spent with my mother on Mother's Day right before she passed away.

And it's also the last place where my father breathed his last breath, so he was martyred, he was assassinated here in this space.

And what was really beautiful, and I attribute it to my mother, is that she turned a place that once represented tragedy into a place of triumph.

And it wasn't just for her, but it was so that this generation could realize and be the beneficiaries of her husband's work.

And so, it's right in that space where my father was gunned down.

It's this beautiful mural that is behind us in this ballroom that my mother selected important moments in her husband's life that she thought were important, like his education, being at the United Nations, being on the continent in various places in Africa, in the Middle East.

And also one that I really love is the picture of her where she's showing her three little girls where daddy is in Africa, and I thought that was just so inspirational.

My father and Dr. King saw themselves as brothers.

They both were fighting against the same injustice for their people.

Dr. King was civil rights.

My father was human rights.

And when young people were marching, demonstrating, protesting for equal opportunities, my father came along and said, "We demand our human rights as your brother."

There is no asking.

You don't ask for permission to be human.

"We demand our human rights ordained by God."

He introduced a human rights agenda to the civil rights movement and to internationalize the struggle for Black people worldwide.

I think what we're discovering now is that people are discovering the beauty in who they are.

When I released my last book, "The Awakening of Malcolm X," we discovered that Malcolm was quoted 54,000 times per day in social media, which was a clear indication that young people were attracted to Malcolm, because Malcolm spoke truth, and we know that truth is timeless.

My father was only in his 20s when the world learned of him, and he was 39 when he was gunned down, and the same with Dr. King.

And if these two young men could do the work that they did, certainly our young people understand and recognize that they can do the same.

I think they serve as a significant source of inspiration to so many Black, white, red, yellow, you know, the whole gamut when it comes to human rights.

- Spoken word is without a doubt one of the most diverse art forms.

With elements of rap, hip hop, storytelling, jazz, dance, rock, and theater, these poems have become a call for action on the issues of social justice, politics, race, and community.

It's my great pleasure to introduce the multi-talented spoken word artist Alonzo Verbal with his piece entitled "The Path to Change."

(footsteps tapping) - The path for change is a decisive one.

Can be divisive or wide range, obtuse, a concisive one.

Mental strain can be weighing.

See, change is taxing, sure to take its toll, loosely jangling in pockets of preservation, gum wrapped in terror and expectation.

It's tough to believe it's enough change to afford peace.

Yet, I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits.

There ain't nothing strange about what this doctor ordered.

No magical enchantments.

Only prescriptions to provoke peace and promote health and dialogue that when we speak enlightenment, it becomes contagious, extremely courageous to traverse this path always under construction.

Carrying as many tools for success as we can clasp, some morals still tend to get lost.

Ideas for change slide quietly into hiding, stuck in the crevices of couches created to encourage conformity, succumbed by a standard we are not designed to participate in.

The lessons you preached, I teach through my child to his children, accompanied by a divine essence, herbalistic, naturally infused with our ancestors' blessing.

By any means necessary, we keep hope alive, meshing greatness, combining creativity, inciting our tomorrow to continue dreaming big.

♪ And I know ♪ ♪ A change going come ♪ Or we going to get it, for true change begins within, And thus, we march on till victory is won.

- There's never a wrong time or the wrong place to build empathy.

That's the mantra of Puppies Behind Bars, a nonprofit organization that has been changing the lives of incarcerated individuals and the community for over 25 years.

By raising and training service dogs, the program is building bridges and creating common ground for the incarcerated, law enforcement, first responders, and wounded veterans.

These loyal and hardworking dogs bring hope and pride to their raisers and independence and security to those they serve.

- Puppies Behind Bars offers people a second chance.

- This program has helped me see my worth as a woman and as an individual, and I'll be able to take that home with me because now I am a stronger woman for my children, I'm a stronger woman for myself.

- Dr. King preached, you know, gratitude, and he preached compassion, and he preached doing the right thing even in the face of so much wrong being done to you.

- The culture of most that come into prison, it's basically a them against us, us against them type of mentality.

I think puppies kinda breaks down that wall.

- I read about a veterinarian in Gainesville, Florida, who started the first guide dog prison program in the country.

I'm gonna start crying, but it spoke to me of hope, it spoke to me of second chances.

It spoke to me that people aren't disposable.

Literally, it just hit me in my gut that this was the right thing to do.

- [Gilbert] You're raising a dog that's gonna eventually go to a veteran, or it could go to a police officer, a first responder, law enforcement in general.

- Our service and facility dogs live in prison with raisers for two years.

They come in at eight weeks of age.

- I'm serving a purpose to the world, to the community, and to society.

I am doing something great.

I'm doing something positive.

- I think it's successful.

First and foremost is the support we get from the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

Several thousand incarcerated individuals have gone through our program, and we have raised about 2000 dogs.

- So in 2006, I actually started out.

I was incarcerated myself.

When I was released in 2010, I was actually looking for employment, and I got a call from Gloria.

She hired me.

I help the raisers learn how to work with the puppies.

- Puppies Behind Bars does not treat an incarcerated individual as though they're incarcerated.

We treat them as though they are people fully capable of responsibility.

- You know, a lot of people say, "Isn't it hard to give up the dog that you've raised for two years?"

Of course it is.

But the end result is what's so satisfying.

- [Gloria] I mean, talk about selflessness and sacrifice.

When that dog leaves, they feel such a sense of accomplishment.

- [Rebecca] There's that connection between us and the dogs, but that connection goes really deep.

And it's not just about training them and teaching them commands.

It's about the love that we give them but that they give us as well, and it's unconditional.

And that helps in the growth process.

- I am mesmerized by the work we're doing now by bringing active duty police officers into prisons.

- It was very eye-opening.

There was no judgment, and that means the world to a lot of us that even after everything that you can come together.

- [Gloria] It's not only changing their mindset.

I really honestly believe it's changing community.

- People do change.

People deserve second chances.

- [Gloria] The incarcerated individuals in our program are doing the right thing, and they're doing so in environments that are really hard, where they may well be surrounded by a hell of a lot of people doing the wrong thing, and they've chosen to do the right thing.

- I never thought I would ever have the opportunity to be great, was ever made to feel I could be great, (chokes up) and this program makes me feel great.

- They've chosen compassion, they've chosen empathy.

I think these are all Dr. King's ideals that he preached.

And building bridges instead of building divides, we are absolutely doing that via our dogs.

- Yeah.

You wanna shake that paw.

(group cheering and clapping) - Yay.

Good boy, good boy.

- Once again, this time, from the Central Park Rose Garden in Schenectady, New York, here is the 2023 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Ensemble.

(water burbling) (birds chirping) (slow soulful music) ♪ Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ You are here turning lives around ♪ ♪ I worship You ♪ ♪ I worship You ♪ ♪ You are here, mending every heart ♪ ♪ I worship You ♪ ♪ I worship You ♪ ♪ Yeah, way maker ♪ ♪ Way maker ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ Miracle worker ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh-oh ♪ ♪ Promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Yeah ♪ ♪ Way maker ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Let's declare, way maker ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker ♪ ♪ Promise keeper ♪ ♪ Promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Come on and declare, way maker ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Hey, way maker ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ Promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Hey, one more time say ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker ♪ ♪ Yes ♪ ♪ Promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Yes ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ ♪ Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper ♪ ♪ Light in the darkness ♪ ♪ My God, that is who You are ♪ (smooth funky music) - Dr. King said, "Intelligence plus character, that is the goal of true education."

Which brings us to the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, established in Harlem in 1925, and originally known as the Division of Negro Literature, History, and Prints.

The center has grown to become one of the most important archives for African American culture and history in the country.

- The history of the Schomburg Center is very much the history of Harlem.

When we talk about the Harlem Renaissance, Arturo Schomburg and his collection were a major part of that.

And Harlem has been called the the Mecca of Black culture, certainly African American culture, and it still is that today, and there are parts of the center that really reflect that.

We're in the main wing of the Schomburg Center in the Latimer Edison Gallery.

And here is an exhibition called Been/Seen, and it's the work of Austin Hansen who was known as Harlem's photographer.

(upbeat jazzy music) And what's really special about this collection is that it's the work of Austin Hansen in conversation with the work of seven artists who are actually still with us.

That's one of the things about having an archive.

It's not that we're just showing history or we're teaching people what was before.

We want people to create new art and actually let it be in conversation.

You actually see that in this exhibition.

So one of my favorite did-you-know facts about the Schomburg Center: Did you know that the ashes of Langston Hughes are actually interred here at the Schomburg Center?

The artwork that holds Langston's ashes is actually called "Rivers," and it's a tribute to Langston Hughes, and "Rivers" is an homage to Langston's first published poem, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers.

And as poems go, it is probably still one of the greatest poems ever written.

It is short, it is tight, it actually speaks to something that is personal for African Americans, but for people whose people and generations have actually traveled.

This is a permanent part of the Schomburg Center, and the focal point of "Rivers" is this thing called "The Cosmogram."

So many people call it "The Cosmogram."

It is a cosmogram, but for folks in Harlem, it is "The Cosmogram," and underneath the Center are Langston Hughes' ashes.

Wow.

The exhibitions that I'm most proud of.

So for 10 years the Schomburg Center was doing a Black Comic Book Festival.

We were really trying to make the point that the comic book creation, the world of animation, was something that Black artists had been using for decades.

There are archival comic books and graphic novels that are part of the collection, and this was a way of actually showing it off.

There's this large legacy series that you see.

Literally, it tells the story of Black history, African American history in this country.

The exhibition that we have, "Boundless," actually, again, is this call and response you see between archival and the work of new creators.

(inspirational music) When we do our Black Comic Book Festival, you know, there are lots of discussions on the stage.

They are animators, but we also do workshops for children.

And one of the things we've always done is ask youngsters to draw a superhero or teach them how to draw a superhero that perhaps reflects who they are.

And it's always a wonderful thing when you get young people to see superhero images like themselves so they could see themselves in history.

You know, when we talk about paths to change, we are helping people to tell their own narrative, their own story, and the collection enables that.

So one of the things artists are often told early in their careers is that you have to see the work of the masters.

You have to read it, you have to watch it, you have to listen to it, you have to hear it so that you can find your own voice.

That's what we were able to do here at the Schomburg Center.

We help people to see, hear, and learn about Black history and culture so they can still find their own voice.

- Have you ever wondered what if Dr. King had attended Maya Angelou's birthday party instead of traveling to Memphis on the eve of his assassination?

That's the premise of "Eye to Eye, Soul to Soul," a new play written by SUNY New Paltz alumni Lester Mayer.

With help from students in the SUNY New Paltz Performing Arts program at the campus' Parker Theatre, we are thrilled to show you act 1 from this play in its official premiere on this program.

(upbeat jazz music) - Love is tricky.

- More or less.

- In this case, it's a danger.

- Okay.

- A secret.

- Well.

- A- A- A- - Trick?

The mastered piece of love must not be jeopardized as revenge to settle the debts of America's historical racial injustice.

- But, but what will our people say, especially in times like these?

- Take your heart out of other folks' opinions and put it in that man's hand.

- What a word, brother.

What a word.

You're right.

You're right.

- Sister, I'm whispering, but I hope you can hear me in the quiet of your ears.

Sometimes the rainbow appears without rain.

The aftermath of a storm is not always necessary to capture nature's beauty.

- And here I was, Martin, thinking I was the poet.

- Yes, you are, sister.

You speak into the eyes of the soul and I listen to them.

- But, brother, as poetic as we are, I still have no clue as to precisely what you're putting down.

- Sister, I'm simply offering you what the trees offered Noah in the form of a boat.

You have all you need to rescue yourself, and in this case, sister, rescue is choosing love.

- Ah, I dig.

You're saying love that man.

- And let him love you.

Skin color, sister, is important, but anyone who dares to look past it and- - And see community.

- And see community, anyone who can free themselves enough to do that ought to be received by their heart's content and not rejected by the troubles of their race, as we all ought to be.

- Brother, I agree, but why am I still scared?

- Scared?

Or judging yourself before others could?

- This ain't church, brother.

- Isn't God everywhere?

- Everywhere in good.

- All the time.

- All the time.

- I went to my mother and she said to me, "Any fool could see you love that man," but it was the way she said it.

You know, like a guest preacher, just a verse short of benediction, or as if a prayer had been lost behind the pulpit, like, like she carried our ancestors' disappointments.

- And what did you say?

- Nothing.

Before I could get it out, she said, "But, baby, oh, he be a white man.

He be a white man that's got your heart."

- 1 Corinthians 13:4-5, "Love is patient, love is kind.

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It does not dishonor others, it is not easily angered, it is not self-seeking, it keeps no record of wrongs."

(soft jazz music) (people chattering) - I...

I, I love him.

Martin, I'm in love with him.

- Then let's go back and celebrate the day the Lord has made for you and grab hold of that love.

Don't fight it, don't try and escape it.

Be it.

Be in love with the man that you love because you love him.

- Thank you, brother.

We are very lucky to have you.

- On the contrary, sister.

We are lucky that God has given us you.

- Oh, no, brother.

No modesty here.

You know what I always say?

Modesty will drop quicker than a fur coat off a pimp on a Mississippi night.

- Sister, I marvel at how you get down on language.

(soft jazz music) (people chattering) (footsteps faintly tapping) (upbeat funky music) - Fear, fail, flow.

Those are the three tenets of SHRED, a nonprofit foundation that uses the unifying power of snowboarding culture to inspire youth by teaching them something as simple as turning a board down a hill covered in snow, they walk away with so much more than a new found passion.

We caught up with Team SHRED recently at Windham Mountain ski resort, and this is what we discovered.

(upbeat music) - When I think about Dr. King, I think about fighting for equality for everyone.

- Back before, you know, I was born, people that looked like me weren't even allowed to snowboard.

And even now to this day, snowboarding is a predominantly white sport.

- I think you can learn a lot from somebody how they snowboard.

The way you ride, it really gives off how you are as a person.

- And maybe when I get older, I could teach more people that were like me when I started.

I feel like the world needs more people that would encourage other people to do stuff.

- We are a 501(c)(3) youth organization that teaches life skills, but also career pathing using the vehicle of snowboarding.

For SHRED, we didn't wanna stop at just providing access to the mountain for snowboarding.

What we wanted to do was create the awareness of the culture, the awareness of the industry, and the awareness of other opportunities within the industry for our youth.

- If it wasn't for SHRED, it would be hard, especially for financial reasons, to pursue snowboarding as a sport.

- What we do is we provide everything free of charge.

If we provide the outerwear, our mountain partners provide the lessons, the lift tickets, the rentals.

- They help to break down some of the key barriers of entry into the sport and make sure that everyone has access.

- I've been snowboarding for five years.

I love snowboarding.

I love doing what I do on the mountain.

When I'm on my snowboard, I feel free.

I feel like I can be myself.

- I'm a Black guy from Central Ohio, so I never grew up snowboarding.

A lot of the youth that we work with live in areas where they're not familiar with anything beyond their 10 block radius.

And also the lack of representation 'cause they really don't see a lot of us in the sport.

I mean, I make the analogy to the Williams sisters, I make the analogy to Tiger Woods is that someone introduced them to that sport.

We have a mantra: fear, fail, flow.

The fear part for a lot of our youth is actually the fear of failure, the fear of trying.

We're ingrained through the educational system to think that failing is a bad thing so without understanding that failure is the part of growth.

The biggest thing is building that resiliency so they understand that there's not an obstacle that they can't overcome if they choose to try to.

- And I've had a couple bad falls.

Even though it hit me and even though it knocked me down, SHRED definitely found a way to pick me back up.

- I have definitely learned to know your limits and overcome your fears to know that everything's gonna be fine.

- Snowboard is not simply an activity, it's not simply a sport, it's actually a culture.

- You don't have to be the best at snowboarding.

That's not really what SHRED is about.

It's just, you know, building that community with people, bettering yourself as a snowboarder and as a person too.

So I would encourage anyone who's young to try it out.

Never know where it'll take you.

- I've made so many, like, really meaningful connections, including friends that I'll have for life through snowboarding.

- I still think there's work to do.

The industry acknowledges that there's work to do, and fortunately, we're one of those organizations that can provide that guide star.

We can't say that we're creating the diversity in the industry if we're not partnering with diverse companies.

So it was a very conscious effort on our part to seek out those companies and those individuals in all lines of work that we're doing to create that change that Dr. King sought.

(upbeat music) (snowboard banging) (snow crunching) - The annual New York State Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Fine Arts and Essay Exhibition sponsored by the New York State Education Department is in recognition of the life and teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Students are asked to create artwork based on one or more of Dr. King's principles of nonviolence.

What you are about to see are submitted artwork from K through 12 schools statewide.

Please enjoy.

(harmonica music) ♪ Come gather 'round people ♪ ♪ Wherever you roam ♪ ♪ And admit that the waters around you have grown ♪ ♪ And accept it that soon you'll be drenched to the bone ♪ ♪ If your time to you is worth savin' ♪ ♪ Then you better start swimming ♪ ♪ Or you'll sink like a stone ♪ ♪ For the times, they are a-changin' ♪ (upbeat folk music) - I hope you enjoyed today's program and our 2023 tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Perhaps like me, you found inspiration in the beautiful stories and performances that were shared.

To my fellow New Yorkers, let's all keep the dream alive, today and every day, together.

♪ We shall, we shall, we shall overcome ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall, we shall overcome ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall, we shall ♪ ♪ We shall overcome ♪ ♪ Someday ♪ (audience cheering and clapping)