York County’s signature MLK Day event won’t happen this weekend. But it’s still coming
South Carolina’s longest-running Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade won’t happen on the holiday weekend, but it will still happen.
The 44th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parade is postponed from Saturday, Jan. 18, to 1 p.m. next Saturday, Jan. 25.
The Western York County branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People moved the York event back a week due to the weather forecast. The National Weather Service predicts a 70% chance of rain and a high of 51 degrees Saturday at the York County Airport in Rock Hill.
The main and related events at what’s been dubbed the “people’s parade” will all return to York on the makeup date.
“Starting at East Madison Street and we’re going to go all the way down to Jefferson Field with the vendors and the bands and the fun and the stage show — all of the things that we’ve been doing for the past 44 years,” Dontavius Williams with the Western York County branch said in a Facebook video announcing the date switch.
The parade has grown to more than 100 entries.
It includes everything from college marching bands to voter registration drives in election years. It’s meant to celebrate the holiday and bring the York community together. The parade began before the federal holiday was created.
“We will continue the show,” Williams said. “We will continue the fun. We will continue the community relationship building.”
Rock Hill regoin celebrates MLK Day
There are several other Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrations throughout the Rock Hill region:
▪ Hundreds of people are expected to attend the Interfaith Prayer Breakfast on Monday morning at First Baptist Church in Rock Hill. The event is sold out. Each year the event recognizes citizens for public service, awards youth essay winners and celebrates King’s legacy.
▪ Fort Mill hosts its MLK Call to Service Day on Monday. The town will have marked boxes in front of town hall from 9 to 11 a.m. to take donations for Classroom Ready, Fort Mill Care Center, Historic Paradise Foundation and York County Council on Aging.
▪ York has the Tender Hearts MLK Weekend Kickoff Celebration on Friday night. The United Mens Club of Clover has its fifth annual MLK Prayer Breakfast at 11 a.m. Monday.
▪ Lancaster has the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration & Parade starting at 3 p.m. Saturday. Activities are on Main Street, with a multicultural ceremony at Hope on the Hill after the parade.
▪ Chester hosts a parade and other activities in downtown on Sunday, starting at 3 p.m. Activities are hosted by the Chester County MLK Celebration Committee.
This story was originally published January 17, 2025 at 12:05 PM.
