A 26-year community celebration in Bellingham connects music, strategy and critique of modern structures and justice.
Community members will gather Monday, Jan. 19, at 7 p.m. at the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship for the Community Food Co-op’s 26th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration, an evening that combines music, reflection and dialogue centered on Dr. King’s vision of justice and beyond.
The co-op celebration is one of several events happening in the area, including Western Washington University’s Community Consortium for Cultural Recognition’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at Sehome High School on Jan. 19, a Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association community work party on Jan. 17 at Squalicum Creek and a Skagit Fisheries and Deception Pass State Park planting party at Pass Lake on Jan. 17.
The Community Food Co-op celebration will use music and community voices to reflect on justice, unity and collective responsibility in the present moment. Rather than centering a formal ceremony, the evening is designed as a space for reflection, connection and shared care as political uncertainty and social division continue to affect marginalized communities.
Karl Meyer, a longtime Community Food Co-op organizer who has coordinated the celebration for more than two decades, said the event began as a small open-mic gathering co-op’s café before growing into a larger, more intentional program as interest increased. The gathering is rooted in King’s vision of the beloved community and the responsibility people have toward each other.
“It’s about community, and we’ve all got to look out for each other,” he said.
Over time the event moved through several venues to accommodate growing attendance, eventually finding a home at the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship.
A major part of that evolution has been the involvement of renowned musician Checo Tohomaso. Now serving as master of the ceremonies and leading pre-event workshops, Tohomaso will guide attendees through “songs of freedom” and Sweet Soul Gospel songs.
“I’ll be doing a song of the Sweet Soul Gospel of freedom,” Tohomaso said. “Songs that encourage and help the movement move forward.”
While Tohomaso’s music honors the legacy of the civil rights movement, the event also encourages reflection on how King’s ideas of justice, strategic action and community responsibility resonate amid today’s political challenges.
Skip Williams, Bellingham city council member and another longtime participant in the MLK Jr. Day celebration, will contribute to the event as a presenter and singer. He will perform music and deliver brief remarks on the significance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, touching on both the historical civil rights movement and the lessons it offers for addressing current social and political challenges.
“Back in the day, when I was growing up, the struggle was mostly centered around African Americans and getting basic rights for them,” Williams said. “Nowadays it has been not only Black people.”
He noted that immigrants, LGBTQ+ communities and other marginalized groups are facing renewed threats, and he suggested King’s principles of peaceful, strategic action remain relevant.
“I believe Dr. King today would have a resolution, find a peaceful way of making this transition instead of a militant life,” Tohomaso said
With reflection on both historical and contemporary struggles, the event also invites the community to come together in celebration and participate as there will be a workshop led by Tohomaso on the same day (Monday, Jan. 19) at 6 p.m at the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship before the main event starts at 7 p.m.
The celebration is open to all members of the community. Meyer and the rest of the team hope to welcome people of all ages and backgrounds, including younger attendees and people of color, to experience this celebration of King’s legacy.
“Dr. King looked out for the people that were struggling, and we all got it,” Meyer said. “Take care of the more marginalized folks in your communities and take care of each other.”
— By Mabaindu Mbawa
Also read in Salish Current:
• “Annual event to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of inclusion ” Jan. 2, 2025
• “Clyde Ford to speak on the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.,” Jan. 2, 2025
• “Commentary: MLK Day in Bellingham: looking backward, stepping forward,” Jan. 10, 2022
• “Commentary: Clyde Ford on speaking up and raising eyebrows,” March 25, 2021
• “Local MLK Day events set the stage for new year of racial justice action,” Jan. 15, 2021