Sara Rubin here, still riding high on the uplifting tone of Monday’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day gathering in Seaside, where speakers did not shy away from the political realities and setbacks of our current moment, but compelled people to forge straight ahead.
Seaside Mayor Ian Oglesby spoke about the power of simply being in a room with people different than ourselves—and the responsibility of upholding each other as worthy and human. He spoke about a familiar refrain in the specifics of today. “Whether you are on a street in Minnesota or a restaurant in Chicago or a field in Modesto, you have the same rights,” he said. “Our freedoms are bound together.”
Agents seizing any group anywhere should spark a call to action for all of us, Oglesby continued. “Maybe when it was the Hispanic community, some people were OK with that because it was my neighbor, it was not me,” he said. “Then it was the Somali community and some people were OK with that. Eventually, it will be your community.”
The sense of togetherness felt tangible and real. It was made perhaps even more real because multiple City of Marina officials joined the Seaside event after canceling their own MLK Day plans late the night before, hours after a police shooting left a Black man dead in a situation that began as a traffic stop.
Details released so far have been very scarce, as the Monterey County District Attorney continues investigating. City officials faced perhaps an impossible choice: Cancel their event in a show of sensitivity instead of celebrating, or continue the planned event to give people a platform to speak out—including against police practices, if they so chose.
"Out of respect for everyone impacted, and to allow appropriate time and space for the ongoing response, we believe it is in the community’s best interest to pause planned public festivities at this time,” the city’s statement read.
"We recognize the importance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the meaning it holds for Marina. Dr. King’s legacy calls on all of us to lead with compassion, dignity, and unity—especially during difficult moments. While we will not gather as planned, our commitment to honoring that legacy remains unchanged."
I spoke to Nathaniel Bell, a senior at Seaside High School and the president of his school’s chapter of the Black Student Union, whose members marched with an MPUSD BSU group. “Overall I want to spread positivity,” Bell told me. “It is a choice, because of the way the world is right now, to bring positivity. Our club just wants to be noticed.”
You’ve been noticed, Nathaniel—and thank you for showing up.