Activism

The Bay Area Celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Day with Service, Marches, Music

“Make a career of humanity,” said King, who was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., on April 4, 1968, when he had come to support a strike by underpaid sanitation workers. “Commit yourself to the noble struggle for civil rights. You will make a greater person of yourself, a greater nation of your country, and a finer world to live in.”

Published

5 months ago

January 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Statue of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King on the National Mall in. Wash., D.C. iStock photo by Italia LLC.

By Daisha Williams

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy of radical change and community empowerment will be celebrated on Monday, Jan. 20.

Though his birthday is Jan. 15, since 1986, the national holiday has been held on the third Monday of January, often as a day of volunteer service.

There is a myriad of ways that people can spend this day, with many different options in the Bay Area.

In Oakland, the MLK Jr. Multicultural Rally Committee will hold its 34th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Rally on Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. at 99 Hegenberger Road featuring speakers from the MLK Freedom Center. For more information, call 510-827-2414.

The same day, the 11th Annual Reclaim MLK’s Radical Legacy Day of Action will be taking place. The Anti Police-Terror Project intends this march to hold true to Dr King’s values which have been watered down since his death. The march will begin at the Oscar Grant Plaza (Oakland City Hall) at 11 a.m.

Honoring the Day of Service, people of all ages can help clean up the Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline at Doolittle Drive and Swan Way in Oakland from 9 a.m.-12 noon. Cleanups are at the Tidewater Boating Center and Oakport Staging Area, and gardening and maintenance at MLK Grove. No registration required.

The African American Museum and Library at 659 14^th St. will hold its annual film festival honoring Rev. King on Monday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Films shown appropriate for children are “The Youngest Marcher” and “The North Star,” shown at 12:10 p.m. and 12:40 p.m. respectively.

In San Francisco, the week-long MLK festival has already started.

On Monday, one of the most enduring observations will occur. According to Johnny Funcheap, “the 2025 MLK March is a poignant and symbolic journey that pays homage to the historic Selma to Montgomery marches and the monumental Voting Rights Act of 1965. Spanning 1.5 miles, this commemorative march and parade begins at San Francisco’s Caltrain Station and winds its way through the heart of the city, ultimately culminating at the serene Yerba Buena Gardens.

“A parade will begin at 11 am starting at 4th and King streets, ending at the Yerba Buena Gardens where there will be a music festival and a health and wellness festival later in the day.”

The Brown AME Church in Selma, Alabama, was the starting point of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King's March to Montgomery to support voting and civil rights. iStock photo by Kirkikis

Selma, AL, USA September 14, 2011 The Brown AME Church in Selma Alabama was the starting point of Martin Luther King’s March to Montgomery to support voting and civil rights

San Francisco is not the only place with events that day though.

In Hayward, there will be a free event on Monday celebrating MLK’s life, with a program of music, community awards and a keynote address by Rev. Amos Brown of San Francisco’s Third Baptist Church. It will be held at the Hayward Unified School District Performing Arts Center beginning at 2390 Panama St. at 4:30 p.m.

The City of Marin’s celebration in honor of Dr. King’s life will take place at 630 Drake Ave. in Sausalito from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will include music, spoken word, youth presentation and speakers. Free and open to the public, this year’s theme will be “Voices of Change, Empowering a New Generation.”

There will be a similar celebration from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Jan. 20 at the Solano County Fairgrounds McCormick Hall at 900 Fairgrounds Dr. in Vallejo. This event has been organized by the Solano County Black Chamber of Commerce and is free to attend. RSVP is required. Please call 707-673-2148 or www.solanoblackchamber.com.

A popular way to spend MLK Day is by giving back to your community. In Richmond, there will be a day of community service on the Richmond Greenway. The Watershed Project organized this event to beautify the greenway and provide opportunity for community reflection and empowerment. They will be meeting at Unity Park Community Plaza at 9 a.m. on Monday to kick off this event. Not only is this free to participate in, but lunch will be provided.

In Stockton, there will be a two-day celebration in honor of Dr. King with keynote speaker Bishop Jerry W. Macklin. The first part of this event will be on Jan. 19 at 5 p.m. at Progressive Community Church in Stockton at 2820 South B St. The next day, a Unity March will begin at 10 a.m. at the Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium. Registration for the march begins at 9 a.m. This event is being put on by Ministers and Community United, INC.

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Remembering George Floyd

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing.

Published

7 hours ago

June 2, 2025

Oakland Post

Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)

By April Ryan
BlackPressUSA Newswire

“The president’s been very clear he has no intentions of pardoning Derek Chauvin, and it’s not a request that we’re looking at,” confirms a senior staffer at the Trump White House. That White House response results from public hope, including from a close Trump ally, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. The timing of Greene’s hopes coincides with the Justice Department’s recent decision to end oversight of local police accused of abuse. It also falls on the fifth anniversary of the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25th. The death sparked national and worldwide outrage and became a transitional moment politically and culturally, although the outcry for laws on police accountability failed.

The death forced then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to focus on deadly police force and accountability. His efforts while president to pass the George Floyd Justice in policing act failed. The death of George Floyd also put a spotlight on the Black community, forcing then-candidate Biden to choose a Black woman running mate. Kamala Harris ultimately became vice president of the United States alongside Joe Biden. Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the cases against the officers involved in the death of Floyd. He remembers,” Trump was in office when George Floyd was killed, and I would blame Trump for creating a negative environment for police-community relations. Remember, it was him who said when the looting starts, the shooting starts, it was him who got rid of all the consent decrees that were in place by the Obama administration.”

In 2025, Police-involved civilian deaths are up by “about 100 to about 11 hundred,” according to Ellison. Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African-American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing. During those minutes on the ground, Floyd cried out for his late mother several times. Police subdued Floyd for an alleged counterfeit $20 bill.