SHORT TAKES : Lionel Hampton Hails Unity Move
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NORWALK, Conn. — Swing Era band leader Lionel Hampton welcomed a service bringing together members of black and white Masonic lodges as a strong step toward racial harmony.
He said the event highlighted his 52 years as a Mason.
“This is love, peace and harmony--breaking down prejudice and kicking it in the pants,” said the 82-year-old musician, keynote speaker at the service Sunday. “I’ve finally seen it come to pass that the black and white brothers can meet together.”
The two lodges, one with 28,000 whites and the other with 2,000 blacks, last year became the first in the United States to grant mutual recognition and certain membership privileges to each other. Recognition allows a Mason to participate in activities in another jurisdiction.
The Masons are a Christian, nondenominational group with 3 million members in the United States and 6 million worldwide.
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