Laura Young
ECB Publishing, Inc.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center of Monticello (MLK Center) has special events planned for the observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birth and life.
The MLK Jr. Day parade entrants should line up at Capital City Bank, located at 800 S. Jefferson St., beginning at 10:30 a.m., as directed by Charles Parrish. There is no fee for participation. The parade begins its procession at 11 a.m., and spectators can view from along either side of the streets as the parade moves on South Jefferson Street from Capital City Bank toward the Courthouse, turns right onto East Washington Street and then right again onto Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. The parade will end at the MLK Center, located at 1420 1st St.
After the parade, activities at the MLK Center include live marching band music, presentations by two guest speakers and time for members of the public to speak about King or their own experiences (with a two-minute limit for each person).
Martin Luther King Jr. entered the public spotlight during the Montgomery bus boycott of 1955 and soon became the heart and soul of the American civil rights movement. He and other black leaders formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, which went on to coordinate many nonviolent civil rights activities during the 1950s and 60s. His leadership resulted in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. At the age of thirty-five, Martin Luther King Jr. was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. At the time of his assassination in 1968, most Jim Crow laws had been struck down, and America's blacks had moved significantly closer to realizing full equality. Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a federal holiday in the United States marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center in Monticello is a non-profit organization that has been operating for more than 50 years. For more information about the MLK Center or this year's MLK Day events, contact Charles or Gwenith Parrish at (850) 997-3760 or (850) 815-2840.