1 of 15

The Natchez High School band marches down Martin Luther King Jr. Street during the annual holiday parade. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

Harmony Washington, center, performs with the Dancing Divas Dance Team during the “I Have A Dream “ youth luncheon at the Natchez Convention Center Monday morning. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

Holy Family student Da’Kaylin Hughes watches the parade from the school’s float. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

Kaylin Saniya Lewis was the guest speaker at the "I Have a Dream" luncheon. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

The annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade will travel down Franklin Street and turn on Martin Luther King Jr. Street on Monday. Lineup will begin at 2 p.m. with the parade starting at 3 p.m.

Nyla Jones recites the poem “Hey Black Child” during the luncheon. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

Mystique Krewe of Natchez Queen Nedra Woods tries throwing candy to the crowd using a reverse back-handed approach. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

Aria Dent, 2, collects candy Monday during the MLK Parade on Franklin Street in Natchez. (Nicole Hester / The Natchez Democrat)

(Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

JoLeah Butler performs a praise dance furing the luncheon at the convention center Monday morning. (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

Mystique Krewe of Natchez (Ben Hillyer / The Natchez Democrat)

The Natchez High School marching band performs Monday during the MLK Parade on Franklin Street in Natchez. / The Natchez Democrat)

Scenes from Monday's Martin Luther King Jr. Parade. (Nicole Hester / The Natchez Democrat)

Scenes from Monday's Martin Luther King Jr. Parade. (Nicole Hester / The Natchez Democrat)

NATCHEZ — Sirens wailed behind the cadence of a bass drum beat accentuated by a rhythmic snare drum as approximately 80 entries paraded through downtown Natchez on Monday in celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The parade, organized by the Natchez-Adams County Branch of the NAACP, included participants from local high schools, churches, youth groups and other organizations.

“We’re here to celebrate Martin Luther King’s dream,” said Shawn Atkins, member of Wayside Lighthouse Love and Holiness church, which had several members riding in a trailer bearing an image of King. “The dream was that one day all men will walk and talk, eat and go to school together.”

Atkins said he believes the nation has come a long way toward reaching King’s dream, but he is afraid the nation has taken a few steps back recently with immigration issues and recent racial incidents in the news.

Atkins said he believes said he believes celebrating King Day can help keep King’s message in the forefront.

“The parade and King Day can help remind people of his sacrifice,” Atkins said. “He showed what true leadership is about.”

Paul Bacon, president of the local NAACP, said he chose this year’s parade theme “Brotherhood and Love for All Humanity” after news reports the past year about immigration struggles on the southern border with Mexico.

“Dr. King was a forerunner for justice,” Bacon said, “not just for the African-American community but for all people in America, regardless of the color or creed of their life or religious background.”

Indeed, participants in, and spectators of, Monday’s parade included whites and blacks as the temperature hovered in the mid 50s under blue skies painted with wispy white clouds.

Monday’s parade started a little later than usual this year, organizers said, to allow participants in the morning’s Natchez Association for the Preservation of Afro-American Culture’s “I Have a Dream Youth Luncheon,” time to participate in the parade.

At the luncheon, main speaker, Kaylin Saniya Lewis, 13, of Robert Lewis Magnet School, challenged today’s youths to follow King’s message of non-violence and discussed problems in today’s society including violence and civility.

Monday afternoon’s cool temperatures did not stop a group of ministers’ wives from the AMB Association of Natchez from huddling into the back of a trailer with blankets to ride in the parade.

Participation was worth bearing a little cold weather, said Virginia Washington, to keep King’s message alive.

“What he fought for was freedom and love for everyone,” Washington said.

More News

City’s bulk materials pickup: Your questions answered

Free program will shed light on enslaved people at Windsor Ruins

Pineville man hospitalized after trying to rescue grandparents from house fire

Convention center, city auditorium update expected at Tuesday’s city meeting