Amid National Unrest, MLK Community March Urges Austinites to Use Their Power

By Oisakhose Aghomo

Photography By Oisakhose Aghomo

Reporting Texas

After a two–year hiatus due to inclement weather, the Martin Luther King Jr. Community March and Festival returned Monday at the Texas Capitol against a backdrop of national political uncertainty — and threats to MLK Day itself

“Our commander in chief is trying to remove this day,” said 61-year-old Austin resident Jackie Sanders. “We’re going to still fight for this day because he (MLK) has earned it and we are here to support and represent.” 

Last year, President Donald Trump ordered the removal of a bronze bust of King  that President Barack Obama had placed in  the Oval Office. Trump also mandated an anti-DEI executive order , which led  some federal agencies to pause MLK Day events. His administration has also revoked free access to national parks for the holiday.

In Austin, hundreds gathered Monday morning at the Capitol, many with signs for causes ranging from reproductive rights to immigration. The march returned after frigid temperatures caused cancellation of the 2025 event, and its start at the Capitol marked a departure from other years when the march began at the MLK Statue on the East Mall of the University of Texas campus.

Sanders, who has lived in the city for 38 years, has participated in the march for 25 years. She noted the march “was not this big years ago” and was impressed by how diverse it has become. 

“When we hear power, a lot of people hear offices, we hear money, we hear titles …but Dr. King didn’t wait for access,” Christianna McAfee, president of the United Black Collegiate Association at UT, told the crowd. “Power is common, and injustice depends on us forgetting that.”

McAfee, along with other speakers at the event, emphasized the importance of community participation. 

“All of us are kind of having to come out constantly these days,” said Jeffrey Clemmons, communications director for state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin. “There’s always something that we have to be protesting whether it’s the surveillance state.. ICE…the attack on our HBCUs. We are having to come out time and time again.” 

A  survey conducted by Pew Research Center in 2025 showed that Americans are concerned about political violence, with 85% of participants saying they believe political violence is increasing.

“We as a people need to do a better job of having constructive conversations that we may not necessarily agree with, so we can learn how to disagree without having disputes,” said march participant Kevin Enders. 

Enders said that younger generations need to learn how to “get off the devices” and talk to each other.

The march concluded with a festival at Huston-Tillotson University, a historically Black university in Austin. There, participants could listen to live music and shop with local business vendors. 

Joya Hayes, former human resources director for the city of Austin, coordinated the march, which is organized each year by the Austin Area Heritage Council. She said that the organization’s goal was to empower people to “feel comfortable,” celebrating Austin’s diversity.

“It was almost symbolic, the storms that kept us from having the event are similar to the storms that have kept us from uniting the way MLK would have wanted us to,” Hayes said.

This year’s event was sponsored by the city of Austin and a number of corporate sponsors including Target. The corporation has faced boycotts including the  “We ain’t buying it campaign,”  following its pivot from its diversity, equity and inclusion  efforts last year. 

When asked how the organization got Target on board for the event,  Hayes responded, “I don’t know but we appreciate it. Everybody is motivated to give to this. It’s hard. People are cutting back. People are not giving money and so we were really appreciative.”