HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Organizers of Houston’s Original MLK Jr. Day Parade just announced plans for their 47th annual celebration.

The Black Heritage Society said the parade is scheduled for Monday, January 20, 2025 in downtown Houston.

ABC13 will bring you all the sights and sounds of the parade. You can watch anywhere you stream Eyewitness News, including Roku and Fire TV. Just search for “ABC13 Houston” in your app store.

Dozens of entries, including bands, cheerleading squads, dancers and unique vehicles, will arrive at the corner of Smith and McKinney at 10 a.m.

Participants will march under the theme “In a diverse society, we must foster acceptance, maintain human dignity and safeguard fundamental human rights.”

The Rev. Dr. Derek King, nephew of assassinated civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will also be featured as grand marshal of the parade.

The previous Saturday, Rev. Dr. King will be honored at the Black Heritage Society Evening at the ICON Hotel. For more details, Click here.

After the parade, participants are invited to experience the MLK Festival and Children’s Day of Service at Hermann Park Plaza, which includes free activities, live entertainment, music, vendors and food trucks.

Civil rights activist Ovide Duncantell Jr. founded Houston’s Original MLK Jr. Day Parade in 1978, even before the federal holiday was established in 1983.

Dr. King, who led a program to bring about social change through nonviolence, was assassinated in 1968 in a hotel in Memphis, Tennessee.

For more information about participating in the parade, visit BlackHeritageSociety.net.

Hermann Park Square is located at 900 Bagby St., Houston.

ABC13 is the official television partner of the Original MLK Jr. Day Parade.

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