Despite a biting breeze and chilly temperatures, the parade Monday honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. still proudly marched down Main Street.
Children lined up and down Main, Broad and South High School Avenue as the parade made its way to St. John the Baptist Church on Lumberton Road.
Once the parade concluded, a near-capacity crowd took part in the program honoring the civil rights leader. The guest speaker was James W. Crowell, state treasurer of the NAACP and Biloxi’s branch president.
The theme of the program was “When we fight, we win,” and Crowell began his speech discussing how King believed first in God, peace and equality. Crowell spoke how King was chosen for the work and how he was committed and courageous to step up and fight the battle using not his fists but words. He reminded everyone that King stood when no one else would.
Crowell asked the audience if they knew what they were fighting for, were ready and had the correct tools. He said people were fighting against each other and not for the greater good.
Crowell said they need to fight against poverty, school dropouts and drug problems. He called for the importance of fighting to end gang violence and drug abuse and for a better foster system.
“We have parents who have kids in the drug trade, and they keep pushing the kids because they want the money,” he said. “We have foster parents who only want the child for money, and therefore the child is just passed around with no real love.”
Ways Crowell suggested the fight can be won is through pre-K programs giving children a better start, working to make our schools better so there will be less dropouts and building strong churches to draw the youth back in.
Attending meetings, Crowell said, is needed. People will never know what is going on if they do not go to meetings and see and hear for themselves.
He also encouraged supporting black-owned businesses. There was a time when a black man could only go to a black business, he said, but then that changed and suddenly people wanted to go to bigger and fancier places because the “ice is colder” over there. He was quick to remind everyone it is important to still remember the black businesses and support them.
Crowell also stressed the importance of saving money. He said you can’t have the money to fight if you don’t save anything.
Make the money work for you through education, he said.
“Why do 1-year-olds need $200 pairs of shoes?” he asked.
He also spoke of the importance of having the Lord in your life.
“When you get right with the Lord, you realize you have been spinning your wheels before then,” he said.
Pictured Above: Cheerleaders from East Marion High School march in the Martin Luther King Jr. parade on Monday. The event culminated with the annual program at St. John the Baptist Church, keynoted by James W. Crowell of the NAACP. | Photo by Susan Amundson
