I"""?"??"""jBB s .r ~"i ^ I Ml The Chronicle Volume43,Number20 WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.- THURSDAY, January 21, 2016 . ' I , , I ? ! II. I I < - *i> || wr Photo by Tcvia Stinson Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis delivers the keynote address during the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Breakfast Forum at the M.C. Benton Convention Center on Monday, Jan. 18. Chains: Racism still exists BY DONNA ROGERS THE CHRONICLE Winston-Salem has come a long way regarding race relations, and appears to be headed in the right direction, a prominent civil rights worker and native of. Oxford, N.C., told 1,200 people on Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. At the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Breakfast Forum at the M.C. Benton , Convention Center down town, Dr. Benjamin* Chavia -spoke about how he dined inf doWfitoWn ' Winston-Salem on Sunday. "Once upon a time, you could not find lis in downtown Winston-Salem," he said. The forum was sponsored by The Chronicle and The Ministers' Conference of Winston-Salem and Vicinity. Chavis worked in the Civil Rights Movement with King as a young man. "Racism, America's Berlin Wall?" was asked at the Breakfast Forum last year. The question remained the theme for the 2016 breakfast. Various leaders answered the question, telling what their organizations and agen cies are doing to try to tear down the wall of racism in Winston-Salem and Forsyth See Chavb on A2 Find more coverage of the MLK Jr. Holiday in the special section inside. Dozens march in the cold to honor Dr. King Photo by Tevin Stinson Below freezing temperatures didn't stop dozens of citizens from coming together for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day rally and march held downtown earlier this week. BYTEVIN STINSON THE CHRONICLE Despite below freezing temperatures and wind gusts that could knock a small child off his or her feet, dozens of people came together Monday morning for the annua] Martin Luther King Jr. Day rally and march. This year, the rally, put on by the Ministers' Conference of Winston Salem and Vicinity began and ended at the M.C. Benton Convention Center. During the rally, marchers carried signs that read, "W S Needs Justice Now," and others aimed toward N.C. Attorney General Roy Cooper. As they made their way around the M.C. Benton Convention Center on Fifth Street, chants of "Free Kalvin Smith," and "Black Lives Matter" echoed through the streets of downtown. The chants of "Free Kalvin Smith" started inside the M.C. Benton Convention Center during the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Breakfast Forum sponsored by The Chronicle and The Ministers' Conference of Winston Salem and Vicinity. Kalvin Michael Smith is serving up to 29 years in prison for the 1995 assault of Jill Marker at the Silk Plant See March on A2 Question: What impact has Dr. Martin Luther King's legacy had on your life? By Tevin StinsonThe Chronicle Alice Everett Winston-Salem, NC "Just knowing what he stood for in general has impacted my life. What he did, he did for oth ers and drat helps me because I can tell my chil dren the importance of caring for others and not to be selfish." See People on A9 assured pn.rr_.jir storage :|,_^|yyjy||j||j]^^ of Winston-Salem, LLC ?? -cr ? ?h ?Q ? 255555?^ If v? ; . 2 it e ~ 8 & - S % ? i | !|