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Saints!

Thursday
March 28th, 2024

mlk march 2020These Liberal citizens march up Kansas Avenue Monday afternoon for this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day march in honor of the work of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Many were on hand for this year’s march. L&T photo/Elly GrimmELLY GRIMM • Leader & Times


“I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. This is our hope.”

These words rang out in several communities in the U.S. Monday and Monday afternoon in Liberal saw several people line up and march up Kansas Avenue in order to honor the life and work of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Many were on hand to participate in this year’s march from Liberal Memorial Library to the Mahuron Park building.

“It’s always good seeing the community come together like this, this is something that should never end, and it’s an interesting way to learn about this culture and this part of our history,” participant Jernell Martinez said. “It was also great seeing the older generations and the younger generations out together with this march and seeing them march together, which was ultimately what Dr. King wanted to see, everyone walking with everyone else.”

“This is also a great thing for the younger generation to come out and participate in and then it gets to them and they decide to come back year after year and a lot of times they bring other people with them,” fellow marcher Unique Vickers said. “I also thought it was cool how there were people who were stopped on the road watching us as we went along and there was even one guy who was taking some video and pictures as we were walking.”

“Dr. King did a lot for the black community and I feel like everyone should follow his example and remember his work,” marcher Sade Braimah said. “I was also surprised at how many people were marching with this, it’s great seeing this event get so much attention.”

King was a prominent figure during the Civil Rights movements during the 1960s, working to make sure everyone of all ethnic groups and age groups had equal rights as everyone else. With some of the recent happenings in the U.S., participants said events like Monday’s march are especially important. 

“I feel like there’s so much conflict between the different races now, especially in bigger cities, and I think we need to have things like this because it brings so many people together and it’s just a great way to honor the past,” Vickers said. “You’re not doing this just to honor what happened in the past, you’re doing it for the present and the future.”

“I also feel there’s a lot of tension nowadays between different races and with how black people are being treated now in a lot of places, marches like this need to happen so people know we’re all one, which is what Dr. King wanted,” Martinez said. “To some people, today might not be a big deal, but to us, it is a big deal because it represents so much of how far we’ve come and also how far we still need to go. And education about things like this is never a bad thing.”

“I remember seeing the news about the white supremacists marching soon after Trump was elected president and I feel like holidays like this need to happen so people know hatred won’t be tolerated and when push comes to shove, we can all come together in a big way,” participant Linasia Lewis said. “I also remember the movie ‘Harriet’ didn’t really have a big release here and there’s so much history that isn’t taught in the schools about that era in history.”

“I actually feel Dr. King should be celebrated a lot more and I hope to see more people out here next year, even though Liberal does have a pretty dominant Hispanic community,” Braimah said. “I’ve grown up here my entire life and there’s not really any black culture here, which I would really like to see more of. I feel like it would be great if more people learned more about what Dr. King did and everything we’ve been through in history, I think there would be so many misconceptions cleared up.”

Participants also offered encouragement for people to participate in next year’s march.

“There were a lot of people who came and I wasn’t expecting that amount, and I think it’s awesome how many people came out to this today and I love how there were people from all backgrounds marching in this, that was great to see,” participant Alana King said. “Just come out and have fun and celebrate with everyone else. It’s not that hard of a walk and it’s a great way to show support for Dr. King’s work. So open your mind up and come and pay your respects. You’ll also hear so many great stories from people, which is always cool, so just come out and celebrate with us.”

“And considering not very many people get today off and considering this holiday isn’t really covered outside of the classroom,” Martinez added, “I feel like being part of something like this is great as far as learning about what Dr. King stood for and how he accomplished everything he was able to despite what he was up against.”

“I would say you’ve got nothing to lose, so just come out and join everyone else,” Braimah added. “We’re all one community and there are so many different cultures that call Liberal home, so come out and enjoy this. Especially afterward is fun with the guest speaker and the time spent with everyone else.”