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Local Civil Rights Leader Continues To March With Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Legacy

A local civil rights leader is continuing her legacy of honoring Martin Luther King Junior in Western North Carolina. 

Oralene Anderson Graves Simmons helped integrate Mars Hill University in 1961 when she became the first African American student to enroll. She also founded the first Martin Luther King Jr. prayer breakfast in Asheville, nearly forty years ago. 

Simmons says that event continues to serve as a reminder that racial equity is a work in progress, particularly as race has become more entrenched in politics. 

“I think that we also see some resurging of some old things that we thought we would not have to deal with,” Simmons said. “But we find that we need to move one and keep our eyes on the prize.”

This years’ sold-out prayer breakfast is Saturday at the Crown Plaza Resort in West Asheville. Other events this weekend include a peace march and a candlelight service on Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Simmons will also be giving a presentation next Wed. at Western Carolina University about Martin Luther King Junior’s legacy.
 

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