Fort Worth’s 40th annual MLK Day parade is a go, despite arctic air headed to Fort Worth
January 16,2025
See full Fort Worth Star-Telegram article near Tiffani Jackson here.
The Fort Worth community will honor the life and legacy of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday, Jan. 20, at its 40th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Parade and Rally.
The parade is scheduled to run from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. and kick off at the intersection of 9th & Commerce Streets in downtown Fort Worth. This year’s event commemorates the 40th anniversary of the march’s inception.
Weather is projected to be “dangerously cold” on Monday, with wind chills falling into the single digits, according to the National Weather Service. Last year’s parade was postponed to February because of freezing weather and the possibility of snow.
But parade committee chair Krista Daniels says as of now, the weather isn’t stopping this year’s parade plans.
She said the celebration will continue as scheduled, even if it’s cold.
“We know how to bundle up,” Daniels said. “We can’t say anything until it happens. Weathermen can predict, but I’m a firm believer that God is going to trump all of this and I’m praying that because it’s our 40th, He will give us good weather so we can do what we need to do.”
Daniels said the celebration is special to Fort Worth residents because King briefly visited the city before he was assassinated in Tenessee years later. That’s why leaders are determined to keep his legacy alive through the event.
“He came here, he spoke, and then he left. And that’s when he went to Tennessee, where he was killed,” Daniels said. “He didn’t go there for just the sanitation workers, he went there to speak about the economic situation and getting the same contracts and living. He spoke about those same things to faith leaders here.”
Daniels said King’s legacy will be honored with a variety of activities and entertainment at the 40th anniversary celebration on Monday, including a battle of the bands.
“We’re going to have a keynote speaker, sing the Black national anthem, and have a moment of silence. Then the young man who won our scholarship will read his essay,” Daniels said. “Then it’ll be the battle of the bands, a march, and a rally call.”
After meeting at 9th and Commerce Streets to start, parade-goers will then travel west on 9th Street, north on Houston Street, and east on Weatherford Street. They will proceed south on Main Street and come to an end at Sundance Square Plaza’s Main & Third Streets.
“We’ve been in this now for 40 years, talking about the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and him fighting for inclusion and equality. We’re still trying to live out his legacy and we’re not going to let it die,” Daniels said. “He was a trail blazer for justice, equality, inclusion. We’re going to keep his dream alive.”