On Saturday morning, a march honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. began near campus before making its way to Civic Plaza downtown.
The march not only celebrated the work of the Civil Rights Movement, but promoted unity within the community. It included an array of groups such as La Raza Unida, the Macedonia Baptist Church, Daniels Family Funeral Service, CNM Outreach and the New Mexico Dream Team.
Sayrah Namaste said she attends the event yearly, but marched with the group La Raza Unida this year.
“It’s really fun to march with so many different kinds of people,” she said. “Everyone’s talking about current events and also memories of the Civil Rights Movement.”
Congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham, D-NM, and state auditor Tim Keller joined the crowd, speaking with those they marched with, Namaste said.
“I really appreciate that both Tim and Michelle didn’t have a bunch of election signs at all — they were just marching with the people,” she said.
The march was filled with positive chants, musicians and guest speakers, which continued to Civic Plaza, where more singing took place before and after the guest speakers.
“There was a group that said Latino’s for Black Lives, and that was beautiful — to see Hispanics talking about Black Lives Matter,” Namaste said.
During the march people also discussed the upcoming inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, as well as concerns with racism and other contemporary issues that need to be addressed today.
“I wish we could say it’s all done, that there’s no more racism and everyone has equal rights,” Namaste said. “It is our job to not just celebrate today, but to commit to continuing the good work of the Civil Rights Movement in our own lives.”
Once the march finished downtown, crowds of people still held signs, some with pictures of Martin Luther King Jr.’s face with the word “Dream” underneath and others still with messages such as “The time is always right to do what is right” and “Let’s stop believing our differences make us superior or inferior to one another.”
Nathan Waites with the organization “What’s Important Now” helped hand out General Mills-sponsored snacks to the crowd.
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A positive vibe is always felt during the march, he said, but this year especially — because of the current political atmosphere — there’s a different charge to it, one that is more urgent.
“I think people are realizing that now more than ever we need to probably come together,” Waites said. “It doesn’t matter who you wanted for president or what your view is. I think what people get is that this event brings people together.”
With the current change in march organizers, there is going to be a push to grow the event for the future.
“It’s only going to get better for sure,” Waites said.
Felipe Rodriguez, an undocumented UNM student and lead coordinator for New Mexico Dream Team, said while he attended the event in the previous year, returning as a member of the pro-immigrant group has been empowering.
“It really feels like we’re part of a bigger movement, not just here in Albuquerque, but on a national level,” he said.
Being at the parade and participating in the march for him is showing a sense of solidarity, Rodriguez said.
“I think the struggle for Black liberation and the struggle for the liberation of the immigrant community and the Latino community, it’s pretty much the same fight, especially with the political climate right now,” he said.
A lot of immigrants have a history of being “under the shadows,” Rodriguez said, which parallels the LGBTQ community coming out of the closet, as many undocumented individuals have a fear of coming out of the shadows to their teachers and people they meet.
Lilia Romain Mijares, an organizer for the NM Dream Team and student at New Mexico Highlands University, said seeing all the people walking down the streets is reassuring, especially knowing everyone is striving for the same thing.
“I think something we realized through our movement is when we’re fighting for some people’s justice issues at the end of the day were fighting for everyone’s justice issues,” she said. “Because at the end of the day we’re all fighting for respect.”
Nichole Harwood is a news reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Nolidoli1.
