Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Breakfast Honors GBFB
An annual Boston tradition, this year’s 51st Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Breakfast Celebration was presented as a virtual event on MLK Jr. Day 2021 with the theme The Arc Toward Justice: Unfinished Business.
The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) was honored with the Drum Major Award, along with Rosie’s Place, a long-time GBFB food distribution partner, and talented Boston-based artist and community organizer Rob “Problak” Gibbs.
Named for Dr. King’s renowned Drum Major sermon, the award recognizes individuals and organizations that exemplify King’s legacy of service and dedication to social justice.
Humbled from the events of this year and the sentiment of the award’s meaning, GBFB President and CEO Catherine D’Amato accepted the award on behalf of Team GBFB while reflecting on the inequities in food access, racial justice, education and economic opportunity.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the events of the past year have heightened the awareness of the structural racism that exists in our communities, and has exacerbated and disproportionately increased food insecurity among communities of color.
2020 census polls have shown that 40% of Black and Latino families are struggling to put food on the table which is three times more likely than white families.
Watch Catherine’s full remarks at the video below.
