Denver Public Schools lunch menu: Fried chicken, collard greens for MLK Day

Colorado was the first state to make Martin Luther King's birthday a holiday, and the annual Marade, the march/parade in his honor, is the largest in the country. So how does Denver Public Schools mark this august occasion? By offering a lunch menu on January 15 -- the same day...

By Patricia Calhoun

January 13, 2010

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Colorado was the first state to make Martin Luther King's birthday a holiday, and the annual Marade, the march/parade in his honor, is the largest in the country.

So how does Denver Public Schools mark this august occasion? By offering a lunch menu on January 15 -- the same day the city hosts the 25th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Business Social Responsibility Awards -- that's billed as "In Honor of M.L.King," and features "Southern Style" chicken, collard greens and sweet potatoes.

Yesterday, DPS apologized for the menu, which was "highly insensitive in light of certain hurtful stereotypes still harbored in parts of our society," according to a statement posted on the district's web site.

On January 18, before the annual Marade that kicks off in nearby City Park, the DPS Student Board of Education will host an MLK Day breakfast in the East High School auditorium to celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

Let's just hope they don't offer Colt 45 along with the oatmeal.

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Patricia Calhoun is editor-in-chief of Westword, the alt-weekly she co-founded in September 1977. She’s been inducted into the Colorado Press Association Hall of Fame, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia Hall of Fame and the Colorado Restaurant Association Hall of Fame. She’s also received dozens of local, state and national awards for writing, including first place for feature writing and first place for column writing with the Society of Professional Journalists. Patricia is a weekly commentator on Colorado Inside Out, PBS 12's public affairs roundtable, which has won two Emmys.

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