For the past 21 years The Chronicle has kicked off Martin Luther King Jr. Day by hosting a prayer breakfast. While we weren’t able to physically bring the community together this year due to the pandemic, more than 5,000 people have tuned in to view the virtual event on Facebook and YouTube held earlier this week.
To commemorate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., for decades the Ministers’ Conference of Winston-Salem and Vicinity (MCWSV) and local legend Mutter Evans have hosted special ceremonies on MLK Day, but this year, due to the pandemic both events were held virtually.
While the date probably won’t show up in any history books, civil rights museums, or your favorite search engine, for the thousands of people who were able to witness the scene at Goler Metropolitan AME Zion Church, April 13, 1964, is a day they will never forget. On that day, just a year after his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stopped in Winston-Salem to galvanize voters.
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools continued its phased re-entry plan to in-person learning earlier this week. On Monday, Jan. 11, grades 2, 3, and 6 returned to the classroom for the first time in 10 months, despite concerns about the surge of the coronavirus across the state.
A lot has changed here at The Chronicle since 1993. Reporters and photographers have come and gone, several editors have moved on, and we’ve even seen a transition in ownership. But over the past 27 years there has remained one constant at the city’s oldest and most respected community newspaper: Paulette Lewis Moore.
Although the meeting was three days after New Year’s Day, the first city council meeting did include a few fireworks. In a last ditch effort to halt $1 million in additional funding being allocated to the renovation of Belview Recreation Center, City Councilmember Annette Scippio proposed a substitute motion, sending the project back to the development stage.
For over a decade Triad Cultural Arts (TCA) has hosted the annual citywide event at a different location every night of the celebration, but due to the pandemic, organizers were forced to make changes. Using Zoom and live feed to Facebook, TCA was able to continue the local tradition and celebration of Kwanzaa.
For the first time in more than 40 years, Ronnie Long celebrated the holidays as a free man. And just a few days before Christmas, Long, who spent 44 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, received the gift he’s been waiting years for, an official pardon from Gov. Roy Cooper.