Viola Davis, Billie Eilish among MLK Jr. Beloved Community Awards honorees
When Bernice A. King, CEO of the King Center, took the stage at the annual MLK Jr. Beloved Community Awards, her oratory power and wise words embodied the spirits of her parents, civil rights activists the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King.
Formerly the Salute to Greatness Awards Gala, the event at Atlanta’s Hyatt Regency on Saturday night attracted a finely dressed crowd of roughly 1,000 who listened to words of inspiration and calls to action.
“We open our arms to the world and invite millions into a celebration of humanity at its best,” Bernice King said, addressing both the in-person crowd and a much larger audience who will, for the first time in the event’s 41-year history, watch the ceremony as a national broadcast on the BET network in February.
“Building community, uniting a nation, the nonviolent way, is more than a thing,” she continued. “It is a mandate for this moment. In a world teetering under the weight of social and economic inequity, in a nation wrestling with polarization and fear, in a global landscape marked by war, conflict, genocide and cries for dignity, we must choose a different path. We must choose the nonviolent way. We must choose to build, not prey; to unite and not divide.”
Her impassioned words, delivered on stage next to a giant black-and-white projection of her parents, set the tone for the evening. It honored individuals and organizations who, like the Kings, have shown dedication to social justice, community building and humanitarian efforts.
The ceremony was emceed by screen actor Aldis Hodge (“Straight Outta Compton,” “Black Adam” and “City on a Hill”), and Tony Award-winning Broadway actor and Disney’s first African American princess, Anika Noni Rose.
Among the most recognizable honorees of the evening was actor and producer Viola Davis, who was presented by Bernice King with the Coretta Scott King Soul of the Nation Award.
Davis used her speech as a moment to reflect back on the little girl she used to be: the “chocolate girl with the thick lips and wide nose in Central Falls, Rhode Island, in 1965” who didn’t see hope and didn’t see dreams.
How far she’s come. Davis grew into an empowered actress who, Bernice King said, “has built a career defined not only by excellence on-screen, but by using her power to expand opportunity, demand fairness and elevate stories that reflect the full humanity of Black lives.”
Other awardees with celebrity cachet included musician Billie Eilish, who was presented with the Environmental Justice Award for her sustainable tour practices, fashion activism and $11.5 million donation to support climate justice and food equity organizations; and LeBron James, whose mother, Gloria James, accepted the Youth Influencer Award on behalf of her son’s foundation, the LeBron James Family Foundation.
The foundation betters the lives of children and families in James’ hometown of Akron, Ohio, through educational initiatives, health care and long-term stable housing.
“(LeBron) wanted his legacy to be the community work that he did off the court,” Gloria James said. “He promised to make a positive and impactful difference in as many lives as he could reach. … It’s a tremendous honor for LeBron to be mentioned in the same sentence as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in any capacity, but to be a recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Award, this is beyond special.”
Other individuals and organizations honored with a Beloved Community award included Dushun Scarbrough Sr., executive director of the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission (Civic Leadership Award); Kara Water, an air-to-water device that produces alkaline water (Technological Innovation Award); Sesame Workshop, the global nonprofit behind Sesame Street (Christine King Farris Legacy of Service in Education Award); Dorothy Jean Tillman, founder and CEO of DorothyJeanius STEAM Leadership Institute (Youth Influencer Award for an Individual); digital communications company Cisco Systems (Social Impact Award); Warrick Dunn, the former NFL player and philanthropist (Yolanda D. King Higher Ground Award); and Robert F. Smith, founder and CEO of Vista Equity Partners (Humanitarian Award).
“Tonight’s honorees show us how they are the light bearers. They are love in action,” Bernice King said. “Their work echoes my father’s timeless reminder that hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that. Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. They are the light.”
Interspersed throughout the Academy Awards style ceremony, guests were entertained by musical performances, including by Chance the Rapper and October London.
After the awards, late-nighters were invited to attend the Afterglow, a party featuring headlining band ConFunkShun. The longtime funk legends, influenced by James Brown and Sly and the Family Stone, have been performing together for more than half a century.
The MLK Jr. Beloved Community Awards were hosted by, and benefited, the King Center, which serves as the official living memorial dedicated to preserving and advancing the legacy and nonviolent teachings of King.
The awards ceremony is one of the King Center’s marquee events in its weeklong observance of the MLK Jr. holiday. Other events included a film screening, children’s book reading and youth summit.
On Monday, the King Center will participate in the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday March and Rally, which will assemble at 1 p.m. on the corner of Baker and Peachtree streets in downtown Atlanta.
This year’s weeklong theme for the MLK Jr. holiday was “Mission Possible 2: Building Community, Uniting A Nation, the Nonviolent Way.”
The theme, Bernice King said, was meant to remind society that even though the world is living through what she called “terminal times,” her father’s “mission is still possible.”
“It’s possible because love is still possible, because justice is still possible,” she said. “Because nonviolence is still the most powerful force for transformation that humanity has ever known. So, we are summoned to rise. We’re summoned to build. We are summoned to love.”
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