By  Dianne Anderson

Given the high rate of Black unemployment and homelessness in Long Beach, chances are that not everyone can afford dinner.

At least for one day, they won’t have to.

Jason Hunter with the Long Beach Refuse Workers Association and several

volunteers are whipping up dinner with over 500 pounds of chicken, ready to cook and distribute free plates of food for the local community after the annual Martin Luther King Parade.

On Saturday, January 14th, the 24th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace & Unity Parade

will start at 10:30 a.m. with the after-celebration at King Park until 5:30 p.m.

Hunter will be serving food in front of New Hope Church of Christ Holiness, at the corner of East 20th and Orange Ave., adjacent to the MLK Park.

“We’ve got some ribs going; we start about six in the morning,” he said. “We have a line all the way around the corner. That’s why we got more chicken; we’re going to have more people this year.”

He and co-workers pitched in, came out of pocket, and also received great donations from the community and this year’s star attraction in the parade is professional skateboarder Terry Kennedy.

“We have all of these volunteers; we marinate and we cook. We put some potato salad with it, with baked beans, the bread businesses bring the bread out. We just give everybody a nice plate of food,” Hunter said.

Historically, looking back on the King movement, the needs today haven’t changed much.

He said that the refuse workers are trying to address the local hunger, the violence, and the needs of the community.

Just one day before King’s assassination in 1968, he had met the Black sanitation workers for the third time in Memphis to talk about their strike against inequality, unsafe working conditions, and unfair wages. A month before, King was also planning the Poor People’s Campaign, a feeding and protest movement.

Hunter said that the Martin Luther King Jr. parade is special to the Refuse Association this year, as they are partnering with several organizations, community and local leaders.  For the parade, he said that he was able to get professional skateboarder Terry Kennedy on board, who is a hit with local youth.

“He’s a role model; he comes from the streets,” he said. “I want to show an example to the rest of the youngsters that if you put yourself in the right position, get a job, go to school, all things are possible.”

This year, he also wants a bigger focus on addressing the violence.

Last week, a young man was killed off 21st Street and Orange Avenue near the park, which had been relatively quiet. The murder has shaken the community.

“We’re just going to have to double and triple our efforts and resist this,” he said. “A lot of these guys are walking around here with no hope, no vision, no information.”

Last summer, the group held a successful job fair at King Park, with a food and housing information giveaway. He is planning something similar this year with a dress code, and will bring in ex-gang members for direct intervention to talk to the community.

“We work with anyone that wants to see progress in the immediate area,” he said. “That’s why I chose King Park to do this.”

Hunter said that he and coworkers started the association to bring local businesses and community leaders together in the fight against high unemployment and hunger.

“We wanted to put ourselves in the position to be like poverty warriors, to go out and make a difference in our community,” he said.

For more information or to volunteer, call 562.259.7016 or  jasonhunter180@gmail.com