On Jan. 15, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the city of Littleton and Arapahoe Community College held their Ninth Annual MLK Birthday Celebration Breakfast at ACC's Littleton campus.

200 citizens and V.I.P.'s turned out for the gathering which reflected on the legacy of Dr. King and how to improve the current state of affairs when it comes to civil rights and bigotry in America.

At 9:15 a.m., Terri Nelson, the librarian for Denver's Black American West Museum and Heritage Center, made the event a stopping site for Colorado's statewide "Passing of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Torch." She presented the torch to Littleton City Council Member and former mayor John Ostermiller and Shirley Harris, one of the creators of the the annual MLK Breakfast who was present to emcee the celebration. The torch had been passed throughout the state by runners, walkers, bikers and motor vehicles, covering approximately 1,000 miles and it was in its last stretch to arrive in Denver later that morning for the annual Marade parade celebration at Civic Center Plaza.

The breakfast featured a keynote address by noted national race relations author Daryl Davis. In 1997, Davis authored Klan-Destine Relationships: A Black Man's Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan. Davis discussed his experience gaining insight in the workings of the Ku Klux Klan and the minds of its members. Davis has been covered by the national news media for having persuaded numerous klans-members to quit the KKK and give up their robes, including an Imperial Wizard (national leader). Both 9News and CW2 News covered Davis' ACC presentation.

Davis' shared his philosophy that racism can be overcome through dialogue between racists and their targets.

"Hate stems from fear of the unknown," he said. "The act of listening to someone and allowing them to present their platform lets them learn more about you," he explained. "And, then after you have listened to them they are compelled to reciprocate and listen to you," he added. "If you've done your homework and present your facts in an intelligent matter you can get them to question their mis-found beliefs."

Davis charged the audience to stand up against bigotry throughout the year and not just on MLK Day and not just when it directly affects them personally. "Don't wait for the government to legislate behavior changes. . .real changes come when attitudes shift and that's what's accomplished when you allow those you hate to present their platforms and then listen to yours." Immediately following the celebration, in an interview with 9 News Davis was asked if he believes America has come a long way since the civil rights dysfunction of the 1960s. He told the reporter that America still has a long way to go and expressed a belief that Latinos, as America's latest wave of immigrants, have become a population where current oppression is most poignant.

After the keynote address, ACC President Dr. Bert Glandon presented the recipients of three MLK memorial scholarships with their awards. Then former Littleton mayor Susan Thorton, discussed the "Littleton Immigrant Initiative," which reaches out to Littleton's substantial immigrant population and encourages them to become American citizens.

Before the celebration was over, the audience listened to an excerpt of an audio recording of Dr. King made at Littleton's Grace Presbyterian Church in 1964 where he talked about the moral and diplomatic importance of the United States ending institutionalized racism because the international community was looking down upon the country at the time for it.

For more information on Daryl Davis, go to www.daryldavis.com.