The enduring relevance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy was the focus for hundreds last Friday morning as they gathered for Virginia Union University’s 47th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Community Leaders Breakfast. The event brought local, state and federal officials to a Downtown hotel, where community members from Richmond and across Virginia reflected on King’s impact in the United States and around the world as the new year began.

“Today, as we navigate a world filled with social, economic and environmental challenges, [King’s] message is more relevant than ever,”

Virginia Union University student Rodney D. Manning Jr. said during the opening. “In today’s world, we are witnessing a resurgence of the struggles Dr. King fought against, from ongoing racial injustice to economic inequality to voter suppression and environmental crisis.”

“The fight for equity and justice is far from over.”

The notion of an unfinished struggle for a better world was a frequent focus throughout the roughly 80-minute celebration, as guests ate, presentations were made and awards were given to area colleges. Speakers Gov. Glenn Youngkin, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan and Mayor Danny Avula reflected on challenges ahead and what King’s mission and impact meant to them.

Youngkin praised the power of prayer for King and himself, while Avula shared his personal experience with, and growing awareness of, racial hierarchies and inequities as he grew up and how it influenced both his professional and personal lives.

VUU President and CEO Hakim J. Lucas called on those in attendance to recommit their support for HBCUs.

“Historically black colleges and universities are critical to ensure that the future of the city, our commonwealth and our country is preserved for all,” said Lucas. “The collective consciousness, that is the responsibility of education to remind you of who you are, whose you are and your commitment to make this truly a country that reflects the beloved community, is what we celebrate today.”

While the lessons learned from King’s legacy varied, the need to be alert in the years to come emerged as a general message from many of the speeches. As McClellan noted in her keynote address, King knew laws like the Civil Rights Act were no “magic wand,” and the underlying inequities of American society he and others sought to overcome wouldn’t be solved so easily.

“Virginia was the birthplace of American democracy, but we’re also the birthplace of American slavery,” McClellan said. “The impact of 300 years of slavery and Jim Crow do not magically disappear with the stroke of President Johnson’s pen.”

It was within this context that McClellan saw King’s work as a blueprint for people of all ages, colors and creeds to continue building a better world. She stressed the need to intentionally undo the inequities baked into the nation’s foundations, and highlighted the importance of love in guiding actions for justice and responses to injustice.

McClellan acknowledged that, despite the progress made by King and others throughout the country’s history, cultural and political backlashes could stall or even reverse gains made in building a better world. She urged those present to follow King’s example fully and fearlessly.

“It is our turn to pick up the mantle that fell when Dr King fell, recommit ourselves to his work and build his beloved community.”