Riverside Families March to Teach King's Legacy

This year marked the 31st annual walk-a-thon to honor the late civil rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. hosted by the Riverside African American Historical Society on Jan. 19.

Over time, Riverside has named a school, street and even a statue in recognition of Dr. King. However, when Rose Mayes, the original coordinator for the walk-a-thon, moved to Riverside from Texas in 1979 she noticed a lack of appreciation for the activist.

"Every place that I went, I saw something of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.," Mayes said. "When I came back to Riverside, I realized I couldn't find anything about him."

Mayes is a prominent figure in fighting for recognition of Dr. King. She was the first to advocate for the renaming of the street which inspired the installation of the statue in Downtown and finally the renaming of the high school.

Multiple people agreed with her but others were also against her. Yet she stood on her argument that Dr. King influenced the world and it would be shameful for Riverside to not recognize his impact.

She shared that her experience in doing so was traumatizing. However the challenges that she encountered motivated her.

"We've got to do something," Mayes said. "More than just meeting and talking, so I thought of the walk-a-thon."

This year, the theme of the event was "Walking Towards the Dream." Chynna Clarke, the secretary on the board of the Riverside African American Historical Society reveals that the theme is about marching towards a dream and embodying the message that Dr. King spread.

A variety of notable figures were in attendance at the march. State Senator Sabrina Cervantes and Riverside Unified School District board member Brent Lee.

The community is who tied the event together. Hundreds of participants ranging from families, students and locals came together to march for Dr. King. The march was a 2 mile trek starting from the Stratton Community Center and ending at Riverside's Main Library.

Mayes shares that it gives her hope seeing the amount of participants that come together to march. She explains that each year is different in the amount of growing participants and that community is a fundamental need for the march.

"We are the ones who are passing the torch to them ( the youth) so that we can make our community the best it can be," said Mayes. "And that's why 31 years later, here we are."

Students from Riverside Polytechnic High School were in attendance of the march to keep Dr. King in remembrance.

"We should all come together to show respect, love and support," Rochelle Dove, the president of the Black Student Union club at the high school said.

This was her first time participating in the march. Dove felt that the march is keeping her on the right path and serves as an example of staying positive.

Cody Warren-Mackay brought his son to experience the march.

"He's only 7-year-old and he's exhausted and he wanted to stop, but I kept telling him it's more than a walk," said Warren-Mackay. "It starts with education first but this experience is just an addition to that education."

Daniela O. Vidal Castellanos brought her son to the march since he had just learned about the activist. She explained to her son that the march was a way to acknowledge what Dr. King stood for civil rights.

Linda Dunston said she was glad to walk with her community, especially alongside her daughter.

By Marissa Perez