Event hall cancels MLK Day 'freedom 2 twerk' event

FLINT, Mich., Jan. 16 (UPI) -- A flyer for a Michigan party sparked outrage for depicting Martin Luther King Jr. wearing a gold chain and celebrating the "freedom 2 twerk."

Victor McEwen said the flyer, which depicts the civil rights icon wearing a gold chain and flashing a westside sign with his hand, led him to ban the man who organized the event under the name Mid-Michigan Teen Parties from holding the planned Martin Luther King Day party at his event hall in Flint, WNEM-TV, Saginaw, Mich., reported Thursday.

"To use one of our fallen giants in this depiction, of course without permission I'm sure, is just [a] racket," McEwen said.

He said he attempted to speak to the organizer about changing the flyer for the party, which is advertised on the flyer as celebrating the "freedom 2 twerk."

"I wanted his reaction, and he did not agree. He [said] there was nothing wrong with it. He was trying to deal with younger crowd and thought it was the route he should go," McEwen said.

McEwen said he voided the man's contract and issued him a refund.