MOSES LAKE — We all have dreams. We all have goals and things we would like to see and achieve in life. Martin Luther King Jr. died well before he was able to see his dream realized. Despite his untimely death, King’s dream of equality lives on and events like Monday night’s MLK celebration in Moses Lake prove that a person’s dream can live on long after they are gone.

The annual celebration of Dr. King’s life was sponsored by the Martin Luther King Jr. Committee and saw the Moses Lake Civic Center Auditorium filled with people ready and willing to learn about King’s life. From local pastors, to cops, city officials and a local judge, community members filled the auditorium and gathered with a reverence for Dr. King and his legacy.

“Dr. King voiced the injustices confronting communities of color in America and called upon all of us to end discrimination. His passionate work, alongside other civil rights legends of his day, confronted constant inequalities and discrimination and was instrumental in changing our laws to address racial injustice,” read a statement from Sen. Maria Cantwell that was read during the celebration.

Monday’s night celebration was also designed to have an informational component to it, as the MLK Committee presented prizes to local Moses Lake students who wrote essays on King’s life and legacy. Numerous dance and musical performances were also featured during the event to engage attendees.

The main speaker for the evening was Big Bend Community College President Terry Leas, who spoke on the relevance of Dr. King, his philosophy of nonviolence and his steps of nonviolent social change. Leas was joined by other speakers during the night, including the Rev. Plasido Lindsey, who recited King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, which was given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

“I think people are wrong if they think that Martin Luther King was solely fighting for equal rights for African-Americans. He was fighting for equal rights for all of us and that is really what I take away from hearing his dream speech. Rights are rights. Dr. King knew that and lost his life fighting for what he believed,” MLK celebration attendee Rosa Gonzalez stated.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.