YOUNGSTOWN – The Rev. Jon Paul Robles must have felt infused by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s spirit and presence as he spoke in a manner that waxed of King’s erudite “I am Proud to be Maladjusted” speech.

“He was proud to wear that badge, that label,” Robles, co-pastor of Sacred Commons Church in Youngstown, said.

The longtime pastor, who also is director of the Greater Youngstown Community Dialogue on Racism group, delivered his remarks as the guest speaker for the Alliance of Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods’ (ACTION) 21st annual banquet at the Our Lady of Mount Carmel social hall, 343 Via Mount Carmel Ave. near downtown.

An estimated 400 clergy members, community leaders, elected officials and others attended the gala to celebrate the 25-year-old grassroots organization’s efforts to fight racism, food insecurities and other challenges while working to enhance the community’s well-being and quality of life.

Serving as master of ceremonies was Mahoning County Probate Judge Robert N. Rusu.

In his talk, titled “Blessed are the Crazy,” Robles centered on the connection that often exists between challenging the status quo, which is usually at odds with fighting for what’s right and just, and being labeled as a radical or maladjusted person. A classic example is standing against militarism, racism and consumerism in an all-too-complacent society, he noted.

“If we could bomb our way to peace, we would have done it by now; if we could shoot our way to peace, we would have done it by now,” he said.

Perhaps among history’s most honorably “maladjusted” people are the nine black students who courageously fought against racism and paid a high price for integrating the all-white Central High School in September 1957 in Little Rock, Arkansas, he said. One of the nine, Minnijean Brown Trickey, has visited the Mahoning Valley on several occasions.

The nine teenagers stood up to a racist mob that wanted to lynch them, yet they kept pursuing the prize of breaking segregation while changing entrenched mindsets and hate-filled hearts, Robles noted.

Robles recalled having asked Brown Trickey what she feels is “damming up the flow to justice” in today’s society, to which she replied that too many Americans are docile, accept things as they are and see the status quo as inevitable, he said, adding that the status quo and racism often are intertwined.

A virtuous life is brought about not by consumerism, but by consummation. Along those lines, it’s far more powerful and rewarding in the long term to place doing what’s right before merely doing what is expedient – even if doing so means losing friends and suffering recriminations, Robles said.

Following such a trajectory may be costly and painful in such ways, but “heaven’s got your back,” he added.

The Rev. Todd Johnson, ACTION’s president and pastor of Second Baptist Church in Warren, said that other important tenets on the organization’s agenda include tackling food insecurities, empowering those who are underserved and often left out of decision-making processes and stepping up voter-engagement and registration efforts in a nonpartisan manner ahead of the Nov. 5 general election.

To address the food problem, a Mobile Market has been operating in the Youngstown area, with one coming to Trumbull County in a few months, Johnson said.

Mariah McCorkle, executive assistant with ACTION’s Warren office, told the large audience that empowerment entails in part giving others a sense of peace, motivation, acceptance and a feeling they’re OK and important. She compared it to driving in a blinding rainstorm to a tunnel, then emerging through it and realizing all is well.

It’s also vital to use empowerment as a tool for bringing about needed societal changes, and for people to allow others to empower them, McCorkle added.

In addition, the banquet featured musical selections by Park Avenue Brass of Leavittsburg.