NATION IN BRIEF

Ebenezer Baptist Church Hosts Annual Tribute to King

ATLANTA -- More than 2,000 people crowded Ebenezer Baptist Church on Monday to honor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s commitment to peace and equality and to note the importance of his legacy in this election year.

"He understood that life is not about self. Life is about service -- and service to others," said Georgia Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle.

Ebenezer Baptist is where King preached from 1960 until his death in 1968, and the church has honored his birthday every year since his assassination in Memphis.

Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said, "Martin aimed high, acted with faith, dreamed miracles that inspired a nation. Can we act on King's legacy without dreaming? I think not. King's legacy gives light to our hopes, permission to our aspirations and relevance to our dreams."

Isaac Newton Farris Jr., a nephew of King's and president of the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, urged diplomacy, economic incentives and other nonviolent efforts "as an alternative to military intervention to end the war in Iraq."

Fire Engulfs 16 Mass. Buildings; 1 Person Hurt

LAWRENCE, Mass. -- A huge blaze started in an empty downtown nightclub early Monday and spread quickly through 16 buildings, destroying houses and businesses and forcing residents to flee in their pajamas into the bitter cold. About 150 people were evacuated from the area as the fire spread quickly on a stiff wind. One person suffered minor injuries.

NTSB Investigating Planes' Deadly Collision

CORONA, Calif. -- Authorities were trying to learn why two small planes collided over a row of businesses, dropping a macabre shower of debris and body parts onto three car dealerships. One person was killed inside a dealership when a plane punctured the building's roof. All four people aboard the two aircraft also were killed in Sunday's crash, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The crash is the sixth in the area over the past 10 years.