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Organizers cancel some Martin Luther King Day public celebrations

A scene from San Francisco's 2013 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. march
Steve Rhodes
/
Flickr / Creative Commons
A scene from San Francisco's 2013 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. march

The annual march and parade in San Francisco honoring the late Martin Luther King Jr. has been cancelledfor 2022 due to concerns over COVID-19.

The website of the San Francisco-based Northern California Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Foundationhas an alert calling off until 2023 the parade and the music festival that had been scheduled for Monday, Jan. 18 at a downtown park.

Indoor events scheduled for Sunday and Monday will be moved online.

The cancellation in San Francisco follows the city of Hayward’s announcement one week ago to postpone another parade honoring King. Last week, a King commemorative march in Vallejo was also cancelled.

The Mercury-News reported that similar public celebrations planned for San Jose and Palo Alto have also been cancelled and will be conducted remotely.

In El Cerrito, the 33rd annual Martin Luther King parade and rally are still scheduled for Monday at the parking lot of the El Cerrito Plaza BART station. However, attendees are being advised to wear masks, observe social distancing and to remain in or near their vehicles, if possible.

Sunni M. Khalid is a veteran of more than 40 years in journalism, having worked in print, radio, television, and web journalism.