More than a memory: MLK march calls for commitment, change
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As hundreds of people marched the city’s streets – a call to action en masse – first-timers stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the longtime attendants of the annual event commemorating one of the nation’s most well-known and influential Civil Rights leaders.
Among those new to the crowd on Monday was Timbo Mack, who said it was accountability and responsibility that brought him to City Hall, where a short ceremony preceded the march in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
It was accountability and responsibility that brought him, said Mack, 40.
“Being an African-American male here, in our community – I think it’s so important for us all to stick together when it comes to stuff like this,” he said. “… just being out here to support the dream and making sure that whatever I’m doing in my everyday life, that I’m continuing to make that commitment.”
Organized by Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., at least 300 people – comprising a wide range of age and ethnic backgrounds – participated in honoring King’s memory through the mile-long march, now in its 37th year.
Among those leading the crowd to the Church of the Good Shepherd were nine participants who held overhead individual letters reading together, “We Believe.”
King, known as a great orator and a galvanizing force in the Civil Rights movement, was assassinated in Memphis in 1968.
The idea is not only to commemorate King’s life, but also to understand that “the systematic injustices that he was fighting took a long time to build, and they’re going to take a long time to break,” said Nikela Pradier, president of the sorority.
The march is open to all – and it will take all working together to solve societal issues, including poverty, racism and militarism, she added.
In her opening remarks, she praised community members who prepared to make the journey toward the church.
“Just by being here, you’re showing that you are willing to learn, grow, advocate, educate and participate,” Pradier said. “Each of you really has the power to be a change agent. So our hope is that if you haven’t fully realized that, that you experience something today … that you start tapping into that potential.”
More: 2022 MLK Day marchHere's how hundreds in Corpus Christi celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s life, legacy
More: See photos of past MLK Day marchesTHROWBACK: Past MLK Day marches in Corpus Christi
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: More than a memory: MLK march calls for commitment, change
