Martin Luther King Holiday events

The very short list: Visit www.oaklandnet.com/celebrations/ for Oakland events, www.nbc11.com/community/1490247/detail.html for events in the South Bay, www.mlkscv.org/index.htm for information about the Freedom Train Monday, Jan. 21, and www.norcalmlk.org/2008 for San Francisco events. With marches, rallies, concerts, breakfasts and awards dinners, MLK Jr. Day is like Kwanzaa. There is so much to see and do and catch up on.

In the Name of Love: Musical Tribute Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Clifford Brown Jr. (right) with Tony, a colleague

I had a lovely interview with Clifford Brown Jr., who said he always knew he would work in radio and presently is program director of KDYA in San Francisco. We spoke of King's legacy and the use of radio as an instrument for social justice. We also talked about culture, most specifically music and how of all the arts it causes people to act.

He was named for an innovative musician who died too soon, a man who had a high moral character and was respected by both his peers and his musical elders for what he brought to the craft. It's hard carrying a name like this, yet Brown took it as a challenge to never let his parents down. Though Brown has been hosting this tribute concert each year since it began, I've never met him, but his reputation certainly preceded him. I was a fan of his Sunday show on KKSM long before the musical tribute started. Visit www.wandaspicks.com to read the entire conversation.

MLK Jr. Day activities at the Oakland Museum

Honoring the legacy of Dr. King, representatives of religious movements not traditionally followed by African Americans (Black Buddhists, Hare Krishnas and Muslims) discuss the mix of cultural and spiritual practices at 2 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of California. Enjoy the stirring melodies of South African freedom songs by Vukani Mawethu, a local choir. Visit the exciting exhibition, "Trading Traditions: California's New Cultures." Hands-on activities for the whole family. Admission is free Sunday, Jan. 21, 12-5 p.m. Visit www.museumca.org/cal-public/index.cgi. The Oakland Museum of California is located at 1000 Oak St. at 10th Street, Oakland.

MLK Jr. Day at the African American Museum and Library in Oakland

This year, Monday, Jan. 21, AAMLO presents Children of the Movement with the films "A Children's March" and "A Picture Book of Martin Luther King Jr." and "Martin Luther King Jr." beginning at 1 p.m. Then at 3:30 p.m. there will be an author talk with Charlene Hampton Holloway, author of "Whitlock's Compositions." Ms. Hampton Holloway is the youngest African-American still living in the state of Kentucky who marched right beside the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1961. She was only 13 years of age. This will be a rare opportunity to engage in living history. It's a free event. RSVP at (510) 637-0200. AAMLO is located on the corner of MLK Jr. Way and 14th Street in Oakland. Visit www.oaklandlibrary.org/AAMLO/AAMLOprograms.html.

Make the Dream Real

The program will begin with prayer invocation by Rev. Michael Yoshii. Sweet Medicine will present soul stirring Indigenous drumming and song. The program will also feature a lyrical rap musical presentation grounded in social justice by 16-year-old Virtuous or "V." The Oakland Interfaith Gospel Youth Choir, directed by Terrance Kelly, will perform, as will Ishmael Combs and the Taylor Memorial Children's Unity Choir. Professor Pitt performs transcendental music. Africa Williams is going to tell stories and 9-year-old Destiny Knuckles will sing gospel music that will lift the audience into the spirit of change. Dezorah Smith closes the program with the Negro National Anthem. This is one of the San Francisco Bay Area's most anticipated events.

Birth of a New Nation: From Selma to Jena

The theme for Youth Speaks' 11th annual "Bringing the Noise" for Martin Luther King Jr. is "Birth of a New Nation: From Selma to Jena." This is a really fun event that draws an audience that spans the generational spectrum. The poetry event begins at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 21, and features wonderful poets. Tickets are $6 for youth 20 and younger and elders. General admission is $20. Advance tickets can be purchased at www.cityboxoffice.com or (415) 392-4408. Held at the Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness and McAllister in San Francisco, Marc Bamuthi Joseph hosts.

Words as Weapons

This Friday, Jan. 18, is the third annual Words as Weapons Youth Conference, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., bringing together civic engagement, social justice and arts education in a unique atmosphere and setting at the African American Art and Culture Complex, 762 Fulton St., San Francisco. Youth will engage in a panel discussion made up of their peers around this year's theme "MOVE! From Selma to Jena." After the panel discussion, youth will participate in creative writing, movement and critical thinking workshops by world-renowned facilitators and educators. The day will conclude with a performance from performers from around the world who will bring culture, music and dance to the stage in celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. For more info, e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit youthspeaks.org/.

Speeches of a Dream

Monday, Jan.21, at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts Theatre, 1428 Alice St., Oakland, there will be poetry from 2 to 4 p.m. featuring Gift Harris, Achebe, Destiny, Fifi, Bernadetta and others. From 4 to 5 p.m., Michael Lange and James Brooks perform "The Meeting." The Jeff Stetson play is a fictional meeting between Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. The afternoon's entertainment is free.

Cultural Connections: A Tribute to Chauncey Bailey

This exhibit featuring the work of artists Karen Oyekanni, Sara Prada and Makeda Rashidi opens Thursday, Jan.17, 5-8 p.m., at the Craft and Cultural Arts Gallery, California State Office Building Atrium, 1515 Clay St., in downtown Oakland across from City Hall. There will be a live performance with UpSurge Jazz Poetry Ensemble. For gallery hours and information, call (510) 622-8190 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it You can also visit www.oaklandculturalarts.org.

Still Life with Commentator

Still Life with Commentator is an unflinching look at the complexities and illusions of life during wartime. This project is a collaboration between jazz pianist and composer Vijay Iyer and hip-hop poet and performer Mike Ladd. The oratorio confronts topics such as surveillance, television news and the blogoshpere. Iyer's score ranges from hip-hop to bebop to ambient synth-pop. This West Coast premiere at Stanford includes Iyer, Ladd and Bay Area composer and sound artist Pamela Z. Please note the performance contains strong language. Show dates are Wednesday and Thursday, Jan. 16 and 17; tickets are $20. The concert is at Stanford University's Pigott Theatre on Serra Street, across from Hoover Tower. There is a post-performance talk, Audio samples are on the Lively Arts website, livelyarts.stanford.edu For more information, call (650) 725-ARTS.

Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra

Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra appear Sunday, Jan. 27, at Stanford, 2:30 p.m., with the theme, "An Evening of Love Songs of Duke Ellington."

Few artists have done more than Wynton Marsalis to reshape the landscape for jazz and measurably expand its audience. One of the most distinguished voices of our time, this Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, conductor, trumpeter and jazz luminary leads a superlative 15-member orchestra renowned for its zealous performances of masterworks and new compositions and arrangements alike. Tickets are $42-$76 for adults, $21-$38 for Stanford students. Visit livelyarts.stanford.edu/event.php?code=WYNT or call (650) 723-2551.

Bay View Arts Editor Wanda Sabir can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Visit her website, www.wandaspicks.com, for an expanded version of Wanda's Picks and for exciting "web exclusives."

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