Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

What Martin Luther King Day was all about

"This is the people's parade, where you don't have to pay to march in it."

Shane Harris speaks to rally attendees outside City College
Shane Harris speaks to rally attendees outside City College

While a parade drew thousands of spectators to San Diego Bay on Sunday (January 15) the hundreds who rallied at City College before marching on city hall Monday afternoon said their event reflected the true embodiment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s life work.

"This is what Martin Luther King Day is all about — while some are running around to expensive high-tower breakfasts or expensive parades where our people can't even pay the contingency fee to march, we're here by the people and for the people to march," said Rev. Shane Harris, leader of the local chapter of the National Action Network. "This is the people's parade, where you don't have to pay to march in it."

Chanting slogans including "Hands up, don't shoot!" and "This is what democracy looks like!" the group proceeded about a half-mile down B Street before rallying at the Civic Center, where city offices were closed for the holiday.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Representing a handful of social justice organizations and labor coalitions, speakers called attention to issues ranging from homelessness to workers' rights and reforming the criminal justice system.

"What Martin Luther King Jr. was doing in the final months of his life was union organizing," said Will Johnson, a representative of United Taxi Workers San Diego. "But I'm sorry to say that the income gap has just continued to grow, and we have more workers in poverty than ever before. That's a shame — we're the richest country in the world, yet so many people live in poverty."

Homeless activists from the Voices of Our City Choir also spoke, as did lawyers for Robert Branch, who faces trial next week. Family members of Alfred Olango, who was killed by El Cajon police last September were also present. Last week district attorney Bonnie Dumanis found the shooting of Olango — whose family had called police for crisis intervention assistance — justified.

Following the march and speeches, Harris and supporters posted a list of demands for the mayor and city council on the locked doors of city hall.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Big kited bluefin on the Red Rooster III

Lake fishing heating up as the weather cools
Shane Harris speaks to rally attendees outside City College
Shane Harris speaks to rally attendees outside City College

While a parade drew thousands of spectators to San Diego Bay on Sunday (January 15) the hundreds who rallied at City College before marching on city hall Monday afternoon said their event reflected the true embodiment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s life work.

"This is what Martin Luther King Day is all about — while some are running around to expensive high-tower breakfasts or expensive parades where our people can't even pay the contingency fee to march, we're here by the people and for the people to march," said Rev. Shane Harris, leader of the local chapter of the National Action Network. "This is the people's parade, where you don't have to pay to march in it."

Chanting slogans including "Hands up, don't shoot!" and "This is what democracy looks like!" the group proceeded about a half-mile down B Street before rallying at the Civic Center, where city offices were closed for the holiday.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Representing a handful of social justice organizations and labor coalitions, speakers called attention to issues ranging from homelessness to workers' rights and reforming the criminal justice system.

"What Martin Luther King Jr. was doing in the final months of his life was union organizing," said Will Johnson, a representative of United Taxi Workers San Diego. "But I'm sorry to say that the income gap has just continued to grow, and we have more workers in poverty than ever before. That's a shame — we're the richest country in the world, yet so many people live in poverty."

Homeless activists from the Voices of Our City Choir also spoke, as did lawyers for Robert Branch, who faces trial next week. Family members of Alfred Olango, who was killed by El Cajon police last September were also present. Last week district attorney Bonnie Dumanis found the shooting of Olango — whose family had called police for crisis intervention assistance — justified.

Following the march and speeches, Harris and supporters posted a list of demands for the mayor and city council on the locked doors of city hall.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Born & Raised offers a less decadent Holiday Punch

Cognac serves to lighten the mood
Next Article

Big kited bluefin on the Red Rooster III

Lake fishing heating up as the weather cools
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader