The national leader of the revitalized Poor People’s Campaign, Rev. William Barber, will lead a rally in Frankfort on June 4. About 350 Kentucky residents are expected to take part in the movement launched by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Rev. William Barber has gained national attention leading a revitalized civil rights movement aimed at galvanizing a diversity of citizens around a few major issues that include poverty, health care, voting rights, systemic racism and environmental devastation.
Rev. Megan Huston is pastor of First Christian Church in Bowling Green. She said the June 4 rally with Rev. Barber is in part the result of the ongoing efforts by the Poor People’s Campaign in Kentucky.
“Every single week we’ve been up there lifting up these issues of poverty and racism and ecological devastation and the war economy," said Huston. "You know, we’re up there and we’re having speak outs, affected people are talking about how these issues are affect their lives and I think Rev. Barber has seen what we’re doing down here and wants to come lift it up with us.”
Huston said about two dozen people from Bowling Green are expected to take part in the June 4 rally, along with concerned citizens from across the state, including another group she is a member of, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth.
Huston said this week's rally will focus on healthcare and the environment.
“In Kentucky there are over 271,000 people who are uninsured," said Huston. "So we’re talking about healthcare, but we’re also talking about ecology and access to clean water and clean energy and the way these issues are affecting our state and the way they overlap with one another.”
The Kentucky Poor People’s Campaign rally in Frankfort is at 2 p.m. June 4 on the steps of the state Capitol.
The event is part of "40 Days of Action" leading to a national March in Washington, D.C. on June 23.
