“While great progress has been made in the Dayton area and across the country, there is still much to do for civil and human rights,” said Anthony Whitmore, president of MLK Dayton, Inc.
Leaders started the march by having participants put their peace signs up in the air.
Sharon Taste and her husband, Sam, have participated in the march most years.
“One of the reasons why I make this a commitment each year is because there are so many people who have gone before us to enable us to even be able to have this march in 2026,” she said.
“It’s a way to acknowledge, it’s a way to honor, it’s a way to remember all of the energy, the effort, the work that has been done before I even existed that enables us to be able to do what we do — not only just on MLK Day, but every single day.”
Taste said held a sign during the march that read, “live the dream every day.”
“We have to live his dream every single day, 365 days a year, not just on MLK Day,” she said.
Deborah Long, who is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc., the Montgomery County, Ohio Alumnae Chapter, grew up in Dayton and has been doing this walk for 46 years since she was 16.
“I’ve been doing it for a long time. We do it as an organization because that’s what we stand for ... We do stand for equal rights to vote. We stand for community service. We do a lot in the community. We do anything from education (and) wellness programs,” she said.
Long said she’s participates in the march to honor her father.
“My father’s from the south, so he had to endure the old Jim Crow laws and stuff like that. So, to be able to walk in his honor as well because he actually lived through it,” she said.
The march was part of a series of events put on to discuss racial justice in Dayton during January. Other events included an emancipation proclamation, worship service, interfaith breakfast, musical concert, the youth celebration and celebration banquet.
The month-long events are put on my MLK Dayton, Inc. and the Planning Committee is chaired by Whitmore and composed of a group of community members including faith leaders, local business representatives, nonprofit organizations, community agencies and youth advocates.
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