LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Hundreds will line the streets of downtown Las Vegas on Monday to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the 44th annual MLK Day parade.
The Las Vegas MLK Day parade has grown from 13 organizations to more than 200 registrants representing 21 states, making it the largest parade in the nation according to The King Center in Atlanta.
Founder and former state assemblyman Wendell P. Williams began the city celebration in 1982.
“Dr. King laid the blueprint down for us, and we can still use it today,” Williams said.
Parade details and theme
The 2026 parade theme is “Living the Dream: Justice in the Journey. Hope in the Hardship.” The event will feature performances, creative floats, motorcycles, performance groups and celebrities.
The parade will shut down dozens of cross streets in downtown Las Vegas for hours. It begins at 10 a.m. Monday, with road closures going into effect as early as 6 a.m.
Week-long celebration
The parade is part of local King Week events, which include the Martin Luther King Jr. Technology Summit, two church services, the Young Dreamers Awards Program and the MLK Scholarship Awards Banquet.
Williams said the mission has evolved beyond the parade. King Week now celebrates educational advancements through scholarships given out for 44 years and legislative victories.
“We lobbied we changed Highland Boulevard to Martin Luther King. We lobbied and we got the Martin Luther King Elementary School. My first session in legislation I passed the King Holiday Bill,” Williams said.
Williams said he believes there is no better time than now to recognize Dr. King’s dream and takes pride in the Las Vegas legacy the city embraces.
“I have had people tell me that they were in the parade in junior high school, their daughter was in the same school in junior high school, now their granddaughter,” Williams said.
Educational and fun events are happening this weekend as part of King Week. For more information visit this link: kingweeklasvegas.com/
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