The DeSoto marching band performs during the 2023 Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in downtown Fort Worth on Monday.
Bob Booth
Special to the Star-Telegram
Along Houston Street in downtown Fort Worth, crowds of people gathered at midday on Monday for the annual parade honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
The parade included high school marching band members with plumes of feathers extending from their hats and stern U.S. Army Junior ROTC cadets.
“Left, left ...,” instructors narrated the steps from bullhorns.
The Fort Worth ISD Jr. ROTC color guard step off the 2023 Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in downtown Fort Worth. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
Union members and politicians past and present from Fort Worth and beyond had representatives at the parade or were there themselves.
Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker and U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, right, walk the parade route of the 2023 MLK Day parade in downtown Fort Worth, Texas, Monday, Jan. 16, 2023. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
“For me, it’s just to see the community come together on this day and be part of the celebrations,” said Debra Edmon, 61, of Fort Worth. She watched from the edge of the Sundance Square plaza as a rally continued after the parade.
People sitting in folding chairs waved at festooned vehicles. An armored limousine was followed a bit later by a vehicle on which a sign advertised free HIV testing.
The crowd lined Houston Street during the 2023 MLK day parade in downtown Fort Worth, Texas, Monday, Jan. 16, 2023. (Special to the Star-Telegram Bob Booth) Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
Cotton candy-sellers attached bags of their product to poles. Some parade participants tossed candy from vehicles to the spectators.
From pickup truck beds, people danced and sang.
Car clubs were grouped by model. Corvettes moved down the street with butterfly doors raised. Roars sounded from motorcycle exhaust pipes.
Hundreds of people participated in this year’s MLK Day parade. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
This was the 38th annual MLK Parade and Rally in downtown, hosted by the Greater Fort Worth Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Committee. The event highlights community unity, the living hope of King’s dream, and a commitment to justice.
Children and teens walking in the MLK Day parade on Monday. Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
The 2023 MLK day parade made its way down Main Street in downtown Fort Worth, Texas, Monday, Jan. 16, 2023. (Special to the Star-Telegram Bob Booth) Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
Hundreds of individuals, organizations and school bands participated in the 2023 MLK day parade in downtown Fort Worth, Texas, Monday, Jan. 16, 2023. (Special to the Star-Telegram Bob Booth) Bob Booth Special to the Star-Telegram
This story was originally published January 16, 2023 at 4:39 PM.
Emerson Clarridge covers crime and other breaking news for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He works days and reports on law enforcement affairs in Tarrant County. He previously was a reporter at the Omaha World-Herald and the Observer-Dispatch in Utica, New York.
