Austin Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration

It’s a busy day for the Austin Heritage Council as it celebrates the late civil rights leader Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

It starts at the MLK statue at the University of Texas. The Austin Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration began in 1983. It was sponsored by the Texas Union African-American Culture Committee and UT.

In 1995, the Austin Area Heritage Council was formed to oversee the celebration and 11 years later it is still organizing the event.

The Council’s Yvette Crawford-Lee says a student from the Texas Empowerment Academy won a contest and will deliver a speech.

It all kicks off at 9 a.m. Marchers will then head to the south steps of the Capitol for another ceremony.

The march continues to Huston-Tillotson University for a festival that lasts until 3 p.m.

If you plan on attending, the Heritage Council hopes you’ll help out the Capital Area Food Bank. Donation bills will be available for healthy non-perishable items like canned food, peanut butter and healthy cereals.

You can get more information here.