Biden to deliver speech at Martin Luther King’s Church
2023.01.15 08:35
Biden to deliver speech at Martin Luther King’s Church
By Kristina Sobol
Budrigannews.com – In an effort to garner African American support for his anticipated 2024 re-election campaign, President Joe Biden will become the first sitting American president to address a Sunday service at Martin Luther King Jr.’s church in Atlanta.
Biden will deliver a sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church in honor of the national holiday commemorating the slain civil rights leader at the invitation of the church’s pastor, Democratic U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia.
King would have turned 94 on Sunday. In 1968, avowed segregationist James Earl Ray killed him in Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 39. From 1960 until his death, King served as pastor of Ebenezer Church.
On Friday, Keisha Lance Bottoms, the director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and a former mayor of Atlanta, told reporters that Biden “will deliver remarks reflecting Dr. King’s life and legacy” and how “we can go forward together.”
She stated that he will discuss a variety of topics, “including how important it is that we have access to our democracy.”
In honor of King, numerous presidents, including Biden, have paid a visit to Ebenezer, usually during celebrations of his birthday. However, Lance Bottoms claims that Biden would be the first to address a regular morning service on Sunday.
Biden will meet with civil rights advocate Al Sharpton in Washington and give a speech to his group, the National Action Network, on Monday, a national holiday to honor King.
The visit to Atlanta comes as Biden prepares to announce his re-election campaign in the coming weeks.
After promising to do more to expand voting rights and address other racial justice issues, Biden was elected in 2020 with strong support from Black voters. However, dissatisfied with what they perceive as his lack of action, some activist groups withdrew from his speech in 2022 in honor of King.
Lance Bottoms stated, “The president has done and will continue to do all that he can do in his executive powers.” Congress must now take action.”
She stated, “I’m sure the president will get an earful on what our needs and our desires are for our country because Ebenezer is a cornerstone of the Black community.”
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