The life and work of civilrights leader...

The life and work of civilrights leader Martin Luther King Jr. will be celebrated Sunday and Monday at Occidental College in Los Angeles with an interfaith observance and conference titled “Building a Human Rights Agenda for the 21st Century.”

Congressional Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) will kick off the conference at 8 p.m. Sunday with a keynote address, “Human Rights and the Legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” Norton has served two terms in Congress and chaired the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under President Jimmy Carter. She is a professor of law at Georgetown University.

Margaret Crahan, Luce professor of religion, power and the political process at Occidental, said she organized the conference at the request of students because “although many human rights crises were resolved in the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, new crises around the world now threaten the survival of democracy in the 21st Century.”

After a 9 a.m. session Monday of student-led panels on human rights concerns, there will be a discussion from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. of some proposals on civil and human rights, and environmental issues.

The panelists include Ilene Cohn, election officer for the U.N. Observer Mission in El Salvador; Clarence J. Dias, president of the International Center for Law and Development; Abdullahi An-Na’im, executive director of Africa Watch; Jan Urban, activist with the Center for Independent Journalism; William Weinberger, co-chairman of the National Lesbian and Gay Law Assn.; Carol Lujan, assistant professor in the School of Justice Studies at Arizona State University; Dorothy Thomas, director of the Women’s Rights Project of Human Rights Watch, and Ellen Lutz, California director of Human Rights Watch.

Crahan will lead a 7 p.m. discussion of international perspectives on human rights. Joining some of the afternoon panelists will be Elizabeth Lira, executive director of the Latin American Institute of Mental Health and Human Rights; Eric Goldstein, research director of Middle East Watch, and Elahe Sharif-Pour, an attorney with the U.N. International Civilian Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Haiti.

Preceding the conference is an interfaith celebration, “Reflections on the Dream,” at 1 p.m. Sunday. The Rev. John M. Perkins, author and founder of the John M. Perkins Foundation for Reconciliation and Development and the Harambee Christian Family Center in Pasadena, will be the keynote speaker.

Occidental College is at 1600 Campus Road, Eagle Rock. The interfaith celebration will be held at Herrick Memorial Chapel and Interfaith Center (213) 259-2621. The conference will be at Thorne Hall (213) 259-2677. The conference is free and open to the public.

KING EVENTS

Here are some other events commemorating the work of King. All are free of charge.

* The poetry of Martin Luther King Jr. will be read and jazz artists Buddy Collette, Abe Most and Art Davis will perform at 11 a.m. Sunday at the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles, 2936 West 8th St. (213) 389-1356.

* The South Coast Ecumenical Council will hold its third annual interfaith celebration at 4:30 p.m. Sunday at St. Cyprian’s Catholic Church. Participants include the Rev. Marv Abrams of Native American United Methodist Church; the Rev. James Shaw of Lily of the Valley Church of God in Christ; Tonia Reyes of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church; Rabbi Howard Laibson of Temple Israel of Long Beach; Father Michael Kourmetis of Assumption Greek Orthodox Church; representatives from the Cambodian Buddhists and Bahai communities, and a multicultural choir. 4714 Clark Ave., Long Beach. (310) 595-0268.

* Temple Israel of Hollywood and Messiah Baptist Church, which have been “covenant partners” for four years, will hold a joint celebration at Sabbath Eve services Jan. 21, at 7:30 p.m. at the synagogue. The guest speaker will be the Rev. Kenneth J. Flowers, senior pastor at Messiah Baptist. Members of both congregations will participate in a service honoring King. 7300 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles. (213) 667-1265.

DATES

* Andrew Young, the former U.N. ambassador and mayor of Atlanta, will speak on the role of spirituality in civic life at Claremont Graduate School at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. He will sign copies of his book, “A Way Out of No Way: The Spiritual Memoirs of Andrew Young.” (909) 621-8028.

* Calvary Chapel Golden Springs opens the doors to its new sanctuary for worship services at 7 a.m., 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Sunday. 22324 Golden Springs Drive, Diamond Bar. (909) 396-1884.

* Guidance Church of Religious Science celebrates its 27th anniversary starting at 10 a.m. Sunday. State Sen. Diane Watson (D-Los Angeles) will speak. 7225 S. Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles. (213) 778-0773.

PEOPLE

* The Rev. J. Bernard Hackworth, founder and pastor of the Testimonial Cathedral Church of God in Christ, has been elected bishop of the Church of God in Christ’s Metropolitan Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, succeeding the late Bishop Benjamin J. Crouch.

* Woodland Hills Presbyterian Church will welcome its new pastor, the Rev. Howard George Ashley, on Jan. 23. (818) 346-7894.

* Silverlake Community Presbyterian Church installs the Rev. David G. Matheke at 4 p.m. Sunday. (213) 663-3151.

* Rabbi Perry Netter of Temple Beth Am in Los Angeles has been elected president of the Rabbinical Assembly of the Pacific Southwest Region for the Conservative Movement.

* The Family Friends Project of Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles, which matches trained senior citizen volunteers with the families of children who have a chronic disability or illness, has received a $15,000 grant from the S. Mark Taper Foundation.

* Rabbi Leonard Lewy has been appointed by the Yvette Luque Hospice in Woodland Hills as its first full-time chaplain.

* Five Jewish day-school educators were honored for exemplary service to children by the Milken Family Foundation with $10,000 Educator Awards: Adina Bender of Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, Rochelle Majer Krich of Yeshiva University High School in Los Angeles, Luisa Lathan of Abraham Joshua Heschel Day School in Northridge, Rabbi Joseph Schreiber of Emek Hebrew Academy in North Hollywood and Sherman Oaks, and Suzanne Linden Stein of Sinai Akiba Academy in West Los Angeles.

Notices may be sent to Southern California File by mail c/o Religion Editor, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053, or by fax to (213) 237-4712. Items must be brief and arrive at least three weeks before the event. Include a phone number, date, time and full address.