SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Hundreds of community members marched through the streets of North Sacramento and Del Paso Heights for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
The federal holiday honors the life and legacy of the civil rights leader on his birthday.
Events were held all across our region, including the march which began at Grant Union High School (GUHS). Participants walked six miles to honor the life of Dr. King.
"It's a great achievement for us to all come together in unity and in love and to walk in support for the dream that he had," said Rev. Robin T. Hood, of Allen Chapel AME Church.
Grant Union High School students marched side by side with locals, community leaders and organizations, like the Greater Sacramento Urban League.
"I think being a native of Jackson, Tennessee, growing up and hearing about Dr. King and seeing the streets that he actually walked on, to come here now and see this newer generation get to just get on the ground and feel what it's like to walk and stand for a cause, I think it's beautiful," Ronnie L Cobb with the Greater Sacramento Urban League.
Dr. King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech during the march on Washington in 1963 inspired the nation and proved pivotal for the civil right movement. Just one year later, Congress passed the landmark Civil Rights Act, prohibiting racial discrimination in the United States.
Marchers reflected on that history on MLK Day.
"The march is more symbolic of a struggle that is really easy to forget because we're more than 60 years removed from the civil rights movement," said Grant Union High School Principal Darris Hinson.
He said GUHS has been participating in marches for more than a decade. Four years ago, they decided to hold a march in Del Paso Heights.
"From a symbolic standpoint, we want young people to understand that the things that we have going for us today, they came at a price. And Dr. King is a man who sacrificed literally his life so that we could have a dream realized of us all coming together as one community," said Principal Hinson.
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