Martin Luther King Jr. parade attracts thousands in St. Pete

“We wouldn’t even be here if Martin Luther King never did what he did”, 11-year-old AJ Baxter said.

“When you’re doing something like this and giving back to your community, you’re realizing (Dr. King’s) vision of people working together to help out”, Hooper said. During the service leaders recognized four academic achievers with an award in honor of Dr. King.

The organizer of Monday’s parade stressed that people should honor Dr. Kig’s legacy and his dream throughout the year – not just on one day.

“Martin Luther King adopted non-violent methods to obtain peace, he didn’t need a gun like so many think they need for safety and for protection”.

“I am very proud every time we step out here for this event”, he said. It’s for everybody and he had to fight for that.

Daniels reminded the crowd that King’s dream can only survive if they continue to carry the torch. When they were being attacked it looked pretty bad to the nation.

“For the southerners who had resisted the Civil Rights movement, it was something they were quite bitter about”, Jacobs said while speaking about former U.S. Senator Jesse Helms’ opposition to the holiday.

Despite the cold weather and controversy surrounding this year’s MLK parade, thousands gathered along the 1.5-mile route from Forest Park to the gates of Fair Park.

“Me and my best friend would not be best friends, because Martin Luther King, Jr. saved us, because black people wouldn’t be talking to white people, and white people wouldn’t be talking to black people”, she said. “I can work with other races”.

“We talked about (their participation) and our attitude has been, when people call, I have to know their attitude”, Collins explained. “I believe that his example is so great that we have to honor him”.

“He (King) believed in nonviolence because he said that the one who engages in violence, could only produce more violence”.

And whether he was listening to children reciting facts about King, listening to the various musical acts, or joining hand-in-hand with everyone else in the auditorium to sing “We Shall Overcome”, McGhee felt that the entire event would have been what Dr. King would have wanted. “I’m not so sure that anyone else could have done what Dr. King did”. “Any soul who has departed the earth in this manner in uniting people we truly respect”, he said.

It’s a marked change national leaders are also reflecting on today.