“Just really having people get into the community, participate in marches”.
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Coleman, Houma’s first African-American police chief, agreed with Pickett’s sentiment as he told the audience, “I stand here to tell you all that Dr. Martin Luther King is the reason I’m standing here today”.
Organizers say the celebration is about honoring civil right movements of the past, present and future.
“It was cold out there, but we made it”, Anna Jones, event coordinator, said.
As public officials, students and parents sat in the auditorium at Monday’s event, Edouard couldn’t help but think that the community could use more events like this even when it’s not Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Instead, they called it ‘Equality Day.’ As gracious as Liz Byrd was, she was just happy that the state would recognize this special day and that is all that mattered to her.
“Martin Luther King Jr”. But dozens made the several-block march from the Douglass High School gym to the Second Missionary Baptist Church.
After the march, participants enjoyed a free viewing of the movie “Woodlawn” at the Palace Theatre. “That’s the legacy he left us; so, we’re doing the best we can to keep it going”.
“It represents the celebration of the legacy of a great man, a great leader, who not only had a dream for himself, but for his family and every human being on earth”, said Alexander. “We are together seeing people as people and uniting, and that is what this day has been about – and it has been a blast all day”.
“What I’m saying is God is good and he gave me this opportunity”, Alexander said.
“We need to make sure that our children understand the struggles we went through”, Rosemond said.
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Hundreds of people marched from the Frank Johnson Recreation Center on Pio Nono Avenue, all the way to downtown Macon where they joined other marchers at the Macon-Bibb Government Center.
