SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Passionate communities have put together efforts for Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Sacramento and Stockton, respectively.
A number marches happened in Sacramento and another community march in Stockton.
Sacramento celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Communities gathered at Sacramento City College for this march and marched nearly 5 miles to 1400 J Street.
4th Annual Reclaim MLK: This was not the dream
The march is the 4th annual Reclaim MLK march, going from Safeway on Alhambra Blvd to the State Capitol. The march was organized by Black Lives Matter Sacramento.
Why people are celebrating
Issues that should be remembered
The marchers for these events gather for a variety of reasons. Today, some of the youngest are marching to look toward a different future, and, even so, other marchers engage in the march as a message of unity in their community.
"Issues should be remembered," said a marcher who identified herself as Tracy from Natomas. "All these big movements and accomplishments that are made in the should be remembered."
"I'm just hopeful that everyone is looked at equally and that no one suffers discrimination for their race," said another Natomas resident who identified herself as Meera.
Today, some are looking toward the future, hoping that lessons from the past can ultimately bring more inclusiveness for tomorrow.
"I just hope that people are aware of everything, and they use the past to apply it to the future so we can work toward a better future that's more inclusive and that strives for change...," added a marcher, who identified herself as Lily from Natomas.
An effort for unity
For others who began their march at the convention center, their participation was all about unity.
“We want to be part of providing a positive image to this community, part of Martin Luther King’s dream was for us to be united,” said Carl Goldwire, of the Buffalo Soldiers biker group.
Some marches also had a strong youth presence, with parents trying to help their kids understand the sacrifices that were made in history for progress to arrive.
“I think it says a lot about our city and our community that we are advancing Dr. King’s dream in this march today," said Al Rowlett, an MLK day marcher. "It really is representative of what Dr. King lived for and what we and other Sacramentans want for our city and our future.”
Photos: Sacramento communities gather for Martin Luther King Day marches
Stockton celebrates Martin Luther King Day
How Martin Luther King Jr. would see the climate in the country today
“Its going to take, first of all, recognizing the problems we have ourselves and looking at the things that really are concerning to us,” said Rev. Dennis Moore of Stockton's 1st Thessalonians Missionary Baptist Church.
“I can see some progress, but I don’t see that some of our youth that are coming up see that same progress,” he added.
His church was one of a coalition of churches that put on the Stockton MLK March, where people traveled from the Stockton Civic Memorial Auditorium to the Martin Luther King Plaza.
Around 100 people gathered for the event.
The event was organized as a two-day event to commemorate the life and vision of Dr. King, with multiple speakers and a youth program offering music, dancing, art projects for kids, and raffles.
Their march came to an end at Martin Luther King Plaza, where speakers were reminded about the life and work of Dr. King.
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WATCH MORE: Sacramento Women's March 2019