Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. links arms with other civil rights leaders as they begin the march to the state capitol in Montgomery from Selma, Ala. on March 21, 1965. The demonstrators are marching for voter registration rights for blacks. Accompanying Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (fourth from right), are on his left Ralph Bunche, undersecretary of the United Nations, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, and Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. They are wearing leis given by a Hawaiian group. (AP Photo)

In Honor of MLK Day, Museum Brings Together Prominent Social Justice Leaders, Including Daughter of Noted Civil Rights Leader Ralph Abernathy, to Explore Alliance Between Black and Jewish Communities

Holocaust Museum LA hosts “Building Bridges:  Civil Rights Then and Now” on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023, at 7 p.m. Inaugurated in 2020 in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, the “Building Bridges” discussion series brings together representatives of key advocacy and social justice organizations in conversation to find and forge common bonds.

“Civil Rights Then and Now” will explore the close alliance between Black and Jewish communities, highlighting some of the remaining challenges in shared struggles against injustice. Donzaleigh Abernathy, the daughter of civil rights pioneer Ralph David Abernathy, is an activist, actor and author.  The best friend of Dr. Martin Luther King, Reverend Dr. Ralph David Abernathy joined him in creating the nonviolent movement. Donzaleigh’s life began with the bombing of her parents’ home and the bombing of her father’s First Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. With her family,  Donzaleigh participated in the major civil rights marches, including the March on Washington and the Selma to Montgomery March for the Right to Vote.

Other panelists include  Avi Dresner (son of Rabbi Israel Dresner, the most arrested and jailed rabbi during the civil rights movement), Michael Lawson (president of the LA Urban League), Pastor William Smart (president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference Southern California) and Rabbi Sharon Brous (senior and founding rabbi of IKAR) in a conversation moderated by USC and UC Berkeley Professor Dan Schnur.

Building Bridges forums are held bimonthly at the museum. Previous “Building Bridges” conversations have included representatives from Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE), Center for Asian Americans United for Self-Empowerment (CAUSE) and Jewish Center for Justice. 

For more information and to register visit https://www.holocaustmuseumla.org/event-details/building-bridges-civil-rights-then-and-now.

About Holocaust Museum LA

Holocaust Museum LA is the first survivor-founded and oldest Holocaust museum in the United States and houses the West Coast’s largest collection of Holocaust-era artifacts. Since 1961, the museum has carried on the mission of the founding survivors to commemorate those who perished, educate future generations about the Holocaust, and inspire a more dignified and humane world. Museum admission is free for all students and children under 17 and is also free for visitors all day Thursday and Sunday from 1-5 p.m. A mobile guide to the museum that can be used both on-site and off-site can be accessed through the Bloomberg Connects app or downloaded on the Google Play or App Store.  https://holocaustmuseumLA.org/