The Cambridge NAACP honored a local entrepreneur and a racial justice organization with their Imagined in Cambridge! Social Innovation Award at its 38th Annual MLK Brunch last weekend, the Cambridge Community Foundation said Thursday.
Black History in Action for Cambridgeport and Emmanuel (Manny) Mervil of Everybody Gotta Eat were honored with the awards during the event, the Cambridge Community Foundation said in a statement.
Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell was the featured speaker at Saturday’s event that focused on the theme “Where Do We Stand in Times of Challenge and Controversy” held at the MIT Walker Memorial building, the Cambridge NAACP said on Facebook
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It was the second year in a row the organization has honored their Imagined in Cambridge! Social Innovation Award winners during the brunch, the foundation’s statement said.
The winners were recognized as ‘Drum Majors’ for community – Black History in Action for Cambridgeport.
The honor is a reference to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Drum Major Instinct Sermon, in which the civil rights icon preached, “Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice,” King intoned. “Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter”
The Imagined in Cambridge! Social Innovation Award was created by the Cambridge Community Foundation in 2019 to “uncover emerging innovators working to solve some of our most intractable social problems,” the organization said on its website.
City Councilor and former Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui was also honored during the brunch, the statement said. Siddiqui has worked to cultivate strong partnerships to scale Cambridge RISE, a pilot guaranteed basic income program fueled by philanthropic support.
She also helped establish a $22-million cash assistance program led by the city and in partnership with CCF and the Cambridge Economic Opportunity Committee to combat economic disparities, the statement said.
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“The event reminded us that Dr. King’s message is not a dream, it is a blueprint; and that grassroots agents – who take their cues from place, history, lived experience – hold the power to lead equity and justice in our communities. Congratulations to NAACP Cambridge and all its awardees for their inspiring work for the people of Cambridge and the city we all love,” the statement said.
Mervil thanked the individuals and organizations who have supported his venture, the statement said.
“Entrepreneurship is hard…It’s not for the weak. But there’s a voice in my head that says: Keep going,” Mervil said. “Cambridge is a big community. I want to keep it like that.”
Adam Sennott can be reached at adam.sennott@globe.com.