Rainbow PUSH Honors Four Achievers With Let Freedom Ring Awards On MLK Day

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Jan 12, 2018, 01:50 ET

DETROIT, Jan. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Rainbow PUSH Coalition founded and led by Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. will at 4:30pm on Monday, January 15 2018 at the Atrium of Cobo Center in Detroit honor four remarkable individuals with its Let Freedom Ring Awards in recognition of their outstanding commitment to freedom, justice and equality in the exemplary tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The honorees are Dr. Mark Schlissel, president of University of Michigan, Karen Weaver, mayor of Flint, Bankole Thompson, Op-Ed columnist at The Detroit News and Nobel laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu whose award at the request of South African Embassy will be received on his behalf by Rev. Jesse Louis Jackson.

Rainbow PUSH pays a special annual tribute to Dr. King for his resplendent legacy in uplifting the human condition. Since 2014, it has worked closely with the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in the planning of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration that occurs at Cobo Center during the auto show.

"Honoring the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and spreading his powerful message of equality and peace to the thousands of international press and executives attending one of the world's greatest auto shows will be truly impactful," said Rev. Jackson. "Dr. King challenged us to live beyond his dream. He was an advocate of social, political, and economic justice. Dr. King died so that all lives would matter."

Rev. Jackson will be joined at the historic event by Mayor Mike Duggan; Congresswomen Brenda Lawrence and Debbie Dingell; Council President Brenda Jones; Judge Greg Mathis; and others. This year's celebration is on the eve of the 50^th Anniversary of Dr. King's untimely death on April 4, 1968.

Major highlights include a musical tribute featuring two-time GRAMMY Award winner, Melanie Fiona. She will open for the headliner, Anthony Hamilton, a GRAMMY Award winner, who has been nominated 17 times for the music industry's top award.

"We are honored to have Rev. Jackson, Rainbow PUSH Coalition and iconic entertainers take our global stage and provide inspiration to the over 5,000 journalists from more than 60 countries, executives and thought-leaders in attendance for Press Preview," said Ryan LaFontaine, 2018 NAIAS Chairman.

SOURCE Rainbow PUSH Coalition