The 2026 Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration held at St. Dominic Church recently was more than just a luncheon and a movie.
It was a challenge. The Shaker Heights Public Library, which hosted this year’s event, asked the 150 attendees to try to build the famous civil rights leader’s dream of a “Beloved Community.” The Beloved Community was King’s vision of a place free of want and hate where people are loved and respected despite their differences.
“Events like these are opportunities to hammer home what makes our community different from other communities,” said Shaker Heights Mayor David Weiss. “It makes us an incredibly special and unusual community.”
After watching a video of King’s hopeful 1965 speech in Shaker Heights where he predicted that “We as Negroes, I believe, are going to win our freedom, because the goal of America is freedom,” guests were put to work.
They were asked to write what resources their community has to achieve King’s Beloved Community and what resources they need. Neon green, pink and orange Post- It notes filled the wall. One set of the colorful notes listed what assets Shaker has: Kind people, great resources, according to some people. Another set enumerated Shaker’s needs: active solidarity for racial social justice and interconnectedness were among those listed.
After a meal of chicken and salmon, officials from the Shaker library and Shaker Heights City Hall vowed that community building would continue through the year.
To follow up, the library will hold two book discussions. A discussion of King’s last book, “Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community” will be held at 6:30 pm on March 25, and a shared reading of Toni Morrison’s “Song of Solomon” will take place at 6:30 pm on June 11. Both events will be held at Shaker Main Library; learn more by clicking here.
Other events will build on the Post-it notes suggestions, said Colleen Jackson, Shaker’s Culture and Engagement Officer. Jackson said she was not just asking people to do the “emotional labor” of writing their hopes and dreams for a better community. “I will be responsible for taking it” from here, Jackson said, promising that she will map out the next steps for implementing the audience’s ideas.