Events celebrating MLK Day in Detroit area

DETROIT – Today is MLK Day, a day when the U.S. honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy.

Here are some events happening in and around Detroit:

• Southfield -- Peace walk at 9 a.m. at Hope United Methodist Church, located at 26275 Northwestern Highway.
• MLK Senior High School -- 11th Annual MLK Legacy March at 11 a.m. 3200 East Lafayette St., Detroit, Mich.
• Fox Theatre -- Rev. Jesse Jackson will host Let Freedom Ring Awards 7 p.m. at the Fox Theatre.

Remembering Detroit’s 1963 ‘Walk to Freedom’ march

Although one thing Dr. King is known for is his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech during the March on Washington in August of 1963, he lead a march in Detroit two months prior.

The July 1963 march in Detroit was, at the time, the largest civil rights demonstration in U.S. history, with 125,000 marching down Woodward Avenue.

Read all about this historic event here.

• In pictures: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visits University of Michigan in 1962