Sikhs in Midwest participate in MLK Day celebration in Oakbrook, Illinois

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MLK Day Celebration_2026_Sikh Prayer by Bhai Mohinder Singh of Wheaton Gurdwara with other interfaith presenters. ALL PHOTOS: Courtesy Rajinder Singh Mago

Oakbrook Terrace, IL: On January 19, 2026, the 3rd Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast was held at the Drury Lane Theater in Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois.

The participation of the Sikh community was coordinated by Roger Chawla, a member of this event organizing committee. A notable display in the lobby featured a poster with a photograph of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and wife Coretta Scott King meeting a Sikh civil rights activist Jaswant Singh Dhami in Southall London, U.K. in 1965. Dhami was the founder of the “Indian Workers Association” (IWA) Great Britain in 1958, to combat racial discrimination experienced by migrant workers of Indian and various other ethnicities in England.

One of the displays at the Oakbrook, Ill., celebration of MLK Day January 19, 2026.

Known as the DuPage County MLK Unity Breakfast, this event brought together a diverse array of community members, including political, business, and civic leaders, neighbors, and changemakers, all united by the common goal of fostering unity within DuPage County and beyond.

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The breakfast marked the largest MLK Day event of its kind in Illinois, according to a press release from Rajinder Singh Mago, a leading Punjabi activist in the Midwest.

MLK Day Celebration January 19, 2026, at Drury Lane Breakfast in Oakbrook, Ill., attended by many from the Sikh community.

Orchestrated by the Dr. Martin Luther King Fund of the DuPage Foundation, the program commenced with an opening blessing delivered by several interfaith leaders including Bhai Mohinder Singh, representing the Sikh community Gurdwara of Wheaton (Illinois Sikh Community Center).

During the event, the “Open Door Award” was presented to Stephen L. Davis in recognition of his exemplary leadership and dedication to fostering inclusivity in the community.