Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center Youth Leaders Join Members of Congress for March 6-8 Civil Rights Pilgrimage to Alabama Created by Rep. John Lewis

OAKLAND, Calif., March 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Seven high school youth leaders from Oakland's Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center will participate in the 2020 Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage to Alabama March 6-8 with Congresswoman Barbara Lee. The annual Pilgrimage was originated in 1998 by Congressman John Lewis and is a program of the Faith in Politics Institute. The Pilgrimage welcomes dozens of bi-cameral, bi-partisan Members of Congress, who travel together to Birmingham, Montgomery and Selma, visiting pivotal sites in the Civil Rights history. The Pilgrimages explore the events that dramatically challenged racial discrimination and turned the course of American democracy. www.mlkfreedomcenter.org.

The Freedom Center delegates will make speeches, present on panels and orchestrate reflection circles with members of Congress and others. The Freedom Center delegates' roles are particularly timely this year as the 2020 Pilgrimage focuses on youth voices.

"Freedom Center students and staff participate in the Pilgrimage fully prepared to listen and learn, and to speak up and connect with others who are prepared to own the common responsibility to confront racism, poverty and violence in ways that create an interracial, pluralistic democracy where love and friendship become our basic strategy for living," commented Dr. Roy D. Wilson, Freedom Center Executive Director.

Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA), regularly takes young people from her district on the Pilgrimages. This year's youth delegates, led by Dr. Karen Bohlke, Freedom Center Director of Government and External Relations, include:

Jaylin Brown, San Leandro High School, 9th grade, from San Leandro, CA
Ayanna Boateng, Sacramento Charter High, 12th grade, from Sacramento, CA
Jayda Gray, Oakland Technical High School, 10th grade, from Richmond, CA
Ursa Kaiser, Oakland Technical High School, 10th grade, from Oakland, CA
Ellie Lee, Alameda Science and Technology Institute, 12th grade, from Alameda, CA
Fayth Njenga, Kentwood High School, 12th grade, from Kent, WA
Jennifer Hernandez, Lincoln High School, 9th grade, from Tacoma, WA

The delegation includes students from Congressional Districts of Congressional Members Ami Bera (CA 7^th CD), Derek Kilmer (WA 6^th CD), and Adam Smith (WA 9^th CD). Bera and Kilmer join Congresswoman Lee and colleagues on the 2020 Pilgrimage. The Freedom Center is supported in part by the Peralta Community Colleges District.

SOURCE Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center