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Ari Berman said he's hesitant to speculate on what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would or would not say if he were alive today.
But despite the disclaimer, Berman received his biggest applause during a luncheon in King's honor Monday by suggesting the civil rights leader would disapprove of the current state of voting rights in the United States.
"I'm reasonably certain that Dr. King would have been outraged by the gutting of the Voting Rights Act," Berman said.
Speaking at the 32nd annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Luncheon, hosted by the Salt Lake City chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Berman said there have been dramatic efforts to roll back voter participation since the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
A wave of restrictive laws have disenfranchised voters, he said, and in 2013 the Supreme Court invalidated a key provision of the landmark 1965 act, freeing Southern states to reform state elections without federal approval.
Berman suggested the push for election reform was triggered by the nation's first black president. And following the Supreme Court decision, he said, this year's presidential election will be the first in 50 years without key federal protections for voters' rights.
"How is it that so many of the things Dr. King fought for are once again under attack today?" Berman asked.
Monday's luncheon was one of several events honoring the life and legacy of King.
More than 100 Utahns, including Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski, gathered at East High School for a rally, followed by a march through the rain to the University of Utah campus.
Brandon Day, a Bluffdale resident, said he participated Monday to honor the work of civil rights leaders and because of the responsibility he feels as a father.
"It's important to show an example that being involved in the community matters," he said.
Speaking at the rally, Biskupksi introduced herself as "the only lesbian mayor in the United States," and said she would not be where she is if not for the activism of a group of East High School students in 1995.
That year, students at the school created the state's first Gay Straight Alliance, and the ensuing backlash prompted the Salt Lake City School District to shut down all extracurricular clubs amid threats that Utah's lawmakers would change state law or forgo millions of dollars in federal education funding if the alliance remained.
The students, supported by the American Civil Liberties Union, sued the school district, which ultimately reversed its decision.
"Their activism got me off my couch and into my community," Biskupski said. "For many of us, what happened at East High School 20 years ago was the beginning of a march toward change."
She said an activist is someone who chooses to push for something better, rather than acquiesce to a current state.
And King, she said, is one of history's greatest activists.
"We need to make sure that over the coming years, we work together to create the community we know we can have and that we want to live in," Biskupski said.
During the NAACP luncheon, researcher and former University of Utah professor Ronald Coleman received the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Civil Rights Award, while former Congresswoman Karen Shepherd received the Rosa Parks Award.
Shepherd said big issues like equality take time, requiring clear eyes and determination.
She said public education is becoming increasingly segregated, and women continue to earn less for their work than their male counterparts.
But she joked that even though she's disappointed with the nation's progress, there is still hope because Hillary Clinton is running for president.
"I, a feminist, have bet people that a woman could never be president," she said. "But I made that bet before an African-American was president for eight years."
Twitter: @bjaminwood