MLK Day In Miami: Check Out America's Oldest And Largest Parade

MIAMI, FL — The nation's oldest and largest MLK Holiday Parade & Family Festival is set to kick off at 11 a.m. Monday in Miami's Liberty City community.

The 43rd annual parade and day-long community festival starts at the corner of NW 54th Street and 10th Ave. The parade ends at MLK Memorial Park, 6000 NW 32nd Court.

The event commemorates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s message of virtuous, non-violent change and seeks to inspire the eradication of poverty, racism and violence.

The parade covers the historic 8-mile route King traveled during his visits to Miami with more than 100 parade entries, including floats, high school and college marching bands, dance and drill teams, equestrians, classic and exotic cars, motorcycles, civic, church, community and veteran groups.

WLRN-TV will livestream the parade on its YouTube channel. A recorded one-hour broadcast of the parade will also be shown on WLRN-TV. The parade will also be broadcast on WPLG-TV starting at 11 a.m.

The community festival takes place from noon to 5 p.m. at MLK Memorial Park featuring cultural programs, performances and culinary experiences.

The event is presented by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parade & Festivities Committee, Inc. with cooperation from the city of Miami, Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade Public Schools, Cox Media, WLRN and The Children’s Trust.

Rick Beasley, executive director of South Florida Workforce Investment Board, will serve as parade grand marshal. For more information, visit www.mlkparadeandfestival.org.

The following street closures will be in effect:

• NW 54th Street will be closed from NW 7th Avenue to NW 19th Avenue. Motorists can use NW 53rd Street to travel on the north side of NW 54th Street and NW 55th Street to travel on the south side.

• The street closures will begin at 7:30 a.m., however, NW 12th Avenue and NW 17th Avenue will remain open in the northbound and southbound direction until 9 a.m. The entire route will be closed to all vehicular traffic as of 9 a.m.

• The staging area is from NW 7th to NW 12th Avenue on NW 54th Street. The staging area overflow will utilize NW 53rd Street (north side) and NW 55th Street (south side) to enter the parade route between NW 7th Avenue and NW 11th Avenue. The residents that live in the area will be allowed access.

• Miami-Dade transit buses that normally travel along NW 54th Street will be rerouted. Check with Miami-Dade Transit Agency for changes in schedule.

• Motorists are encouraged to take alternate routes, if they need to travel in the vicinity. City of Miami police officers will be placed along the closure to provide assistance.

• The streets are scheduled to begin reopening of streets in phases starting around 2 p.m. The roads are expected to be completely open for traffic by 5 p.m.

Florida International University was also planning several events to honor the slain civil rights leader:

• MLK Parade: On Monday, Jan. 20 at 8 a.m.: FIU President Mark B. Rosenberg, joined by students, faculty, and staff will participate in Liberty City’s annual parade along Northwest 54th Street.

• Robert M. Coatie MLK Youth Forum & Peace Walk: On Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 10 a.m. at FIU’s Biscayne Bay Campus, 3000 NE 151st St., Lisa Lee Arneaud host of the high school game show School Duel on Beacon-TV will speak to more than 300 high school students before the annual peace walk. Arneaud is a former teacher and currently serves as the community spokesperson for the State Attorney’s Office in Broward County.

• MLK @ The Frost Art Museum FIU Exhibit: From Jan. 25 to April 26 the Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum will feature an exhibition by filmmaker Terence Price II, entitled Terence Price II: Never Ending Gardens, which includes new and recent street photography and videos that address familial rites of passage, preserving history, gun violence, and community celebrations. The exhibition is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Exhibition Series, which addresses issues of race, diversity, social justice, civil rights, and humanity to serve as a catalyst for dialogue and to enrich the community with new perspectives.
• An opening reception will be held at the Frost Art Museum at 4 p.m. Feb. 6 at and is free and open to the public. Click here for more details.

For more on FIU’s MLK Commemorative Celebration, click here or contact the Office of Multicultural Programs and Services in the Division of Academic and Student Affairs at 305-348-2436.