San Antonio’s East Facet will welcome round 200,000 individuals on Monday morning for its annual group march, honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Final 12 months’s march was rescheduled for the primary time ever resulting from inclement climate, however organizers are prepared for this 12 months’s occasion and count on massive crowds.
Now in its thirty eighth 12 months, town’s annual march is named the “largest MLK March within the nation,” in response to the San Antonio Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Fee, a volunteer group established in 1986 — one which awards hundreds in scholar scholarships annually.
MLK Fee Chair Dwayne Robinson mentioned there will probably be additional safety in place to verify everybody can march safely and comfortably.
“All San Antonians must be pleased with the truth that we’ve got the biggest ML King march within the nation, however we additionally acknowledge that there are nonetheless some challenges in our society that we have to attempt to handle,” Robinson mentioned.
The MLK march is understood for its numerous crowds marching and singing in unison, many holding hand-painted indicators spreading messages of peace and remembering the names and faces of people that have misplaced their lives in racially-motivated assaults.
“It’s a day that we get to return collectively as simply regular residents and have conversations about among the challenges that influence our neighborhoods and our communities and our cities,” he mentioned. “Several types of neighbors get to satisfy somebody that they’ve by no means met earlier than.”
Many employees across the nation, in addition to college students, will probably be off for MLK Day, a federal vacation commemorating the civil rights chief’s birthday.
This 12 months’s theme is “We’re the dream, it takes all of us.”
The MLK Pre-March Early Morning Worship Service Program begins at 8 a.m., and can finish at 10 a.m., when crowds of individuals will start marching.
The march follows the identical route as all the time, with individuals beginning on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Academy at 3501 Martin Luther King Dr. and ending with a celebration at Pittman-Sullivan Park at 1101 Iowa Road.
This 12 months’s keynote speaker will probably be King’s daughter-in-law, Arndrea Waters King, who will probably be signing books to the latest ebook she revealed together with her husband Martin Luther King, Jr. III, “What Is My Legacy?: Realizing a New Dream of Connection, Love and Achievement.”
Gospel singer V. Michael McKay, seasoned jazz saxophonist BillyRay Sheppard and world famend violin jazz performer and Sam Houston Excessive graduate Michael Ward will take the stage for leisure.
“King and plenty of the opposite heroes and sheroes of the civil rights motion, their efforts have been greater than simply for the African American group,” Robinson mentioned. “It could have been main or it might have been our base, however definitely they have been combating for rights for any American citizen.”
Practically 7% of San Antonio’s inhabitants is Black.
What you want to know earlier than you go
Teams of individuals begin lining up early — earlier than 8 a.m. on Monday. Parking tons surrounding the route refill quick, so plan forward. Vehicles, bikes and motor automobiles aren’t allowed within the procession.
The best choice is to take a VIA bus.
Get a free journey to the march between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. once you park your automobile at Lot 1 on the Freeman Coliseum, situated at 3201 E. Houston Road, or at Lot 22 at St. Philip’s Faculty at 1801 Martin Luther King Dr. The drop-off level for service to the march is a brief stroll away on MLK Drive, west of Upland Drive.
Get a journey again to your automobile between midday and three p.m. from the pickup location at Pittman-Sullivan Park. The free occasion features a primary stage with multicultural performances, a well being and wellness space, youth actions space, and plenty of meals and merchandise distributors and knowledge cubicles.
For extra occasions impressed by King, try the annual citywide summit known as DreamWeek, which ends Jan. 26. To see the total record of occasions, click on right here.
