For Immediate Release
POC: Mr. Djuan C. Smith, Community and Media Relations
(703) 765-4459
Justice Sunday™ leads to a March on Washington
WASHINGTON, DC. Extending the Martin Luther King Day of Service to one which inspires
volunteerism before and beyond, the National Alliance of Faith and Justice has announced plans
today for Justice Sunday™ 2010 and The March on Washington (for Mentors and No Violence) to
occur in the nation’s Capitol.
Recognizing the 50th anniversary of student leadership in non-violent social change, the Martin
Luther King Day of Service Week will begin with the annual observance of Justice Sunday™.
Observed by churches and organizations of faith and community nationwide, the national interfaith
service will occur this year in Washington, DC, one of over 40 Cities of Service, on January 17, 10am.
Peace Baptist Church, located at 712 – 18th Street, NE, will serve as host of the national Justice
Sunday™ service. The name Peace symbolizes an appeal for acts of volunteerism aimed at the
reduction of violence, one of several national priorities for this year’s observance and service
learning focus.
Faith and federal officials will join constituents and visitors to launch a year-long continuum of
service to include the kickoff of the District’s REENTRY REFLECTION 2010 in partnership with
Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency and NAFJ’s nationwide launch of RENEW THE
NEIGHBOR AND THE HOOD. Persons attending Justice Sunday™ at Peace Baptist will be able to
serve and will have a variety of other service opportunities throughout the city for which they will
be able to volunteer, to include participation and logistical support roles for Friday’s march.
On Friday, January 22, high school, college students, and adult volunteers from at least five states to
date will unite in their commitment and recruitment for mentors, school behavioral improvement,
and to assert youth voice and leadership of peers for the March on Washington for Mentors and
No Violence. The march/walk will begin at the Reflecting Pool steps of the Lincoln Memorial and
continue along the walkways of the National Mall to the U.S. Capitol. Consistent with the visuals
and mass action of the civil rights movement, the mentor recruitment march will offer a unique
intergenerational service learning activity which remembers Dr. King’s historic message, “I Have A
Dream,” with a high visibility appeal and articulation of the dream for more mentors and the end of
destructive violence in all forms. The March on Washington for Mentors and No Violence marks
the beginning of the 2010 PEN OR PENCIL™ SNCC (Student Nonviolence Coordinating Committee)
50th Anniversary Semester of Service.
Among objectives, NAFJ hopes to stimulate more knowledge about the extreme sacrifices and
stories of the civil rights movement and the benefits of responsible civic participation to include the
goals of the historic March on Washington. Through events like the lunch counter sit-ins led by
students and the formation of SNCC, the march is designed to demonstrate how history and the
commitment to want change can be used as templates to challenge tough issues of today. Plans are
underway for a national press conference following the march which will involve Congressional
leaders, youth participants, civil rights pioneers, and mentoring organizational representatives.
The National Alliance of Faith and Justice is a national intermediary for the MLK Day of Service in cooperation with the
Corporation for National and Community Service. Visit www.nafj.org. For more information, contact [email protected].