Name: Coronavirus will keep San Antonio’s 2021 MLK March off the streets; major event is going virtual
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Coronavirus will keep San Antonio’s 2021 MLK March off the streets; major event is going virtual

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For the first time in its 37-year history, San Antonio’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. March will go virtual over concerns that the coronavirus pandemic still might be gripping the community.The city’s independent MLK Commission unanimously voted late last month to nix the in-person march in favor of a completely online event in January, the march’s chair, Renee Watson, said Friday.“We can still march from our porches,” Watson said. “We can still be involved. We can still celebrate and still recognize Dr. King. But we’re just going to have to do it in a different way.”Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the decision was understandable but disappointing.“That’s one of the events that we take most pride in as a community,” Nirenberg said.The mayor said he would defer to the commission but hopes there might be an opportunity to reconsider if the situation changes.“It’s the largest MLK march in the country, and certainly count me among those who would love to see it happen,” he said, “especially given all that we’ve experienced together as a community this year.”The unifying event typically draws tens of thousands of people from across the city to the East Side, rain or shine. This year’s event had about 100,000 people. The 2.75-mile march goes along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, from Martin Luther King Jr. Academy to Pittman-Sullivan Park.Given the large turnout, commissioners are wary of that many people gathering and creating a potential “superspreader” event, Watson said. Commission members held three meetings on the matter and received a briefing from officials with the San Antonio Metropolitan Health District before making their decision.Leaders also took into account the disease’s disproportionate effect on communities of color, Watson said.Nationally, the COVID-19 death rate for Black and Latino Americans exceeds that of whites. Within San Antonio city limits, about half of those who have died lived on the West Side and South Side, parts of town that are overwhelmingly Hispanic, Metro Health data shows.Organizers are still hammering out the exact details of the virtual event. But Watson said marchgoers can expect to see a round of speakers, musicians and poets, as they would if the march was held in person.It’ll just be on a screen.Staff writer Mark Dunphy contributed to this report.Joshua Fechter is a staff writer covering San Antonio government and politics. To read more from Joshua, . | Twitter:

For the first time in its 37-year history, San Antonio’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. March will go virtual over concerns that the coronavirus pandemic still might be gripping the community.The city’s independent MLK Commission unanimously voted late last month to nix the in-person march in favor of a completely online event in January, the march’s chair, Renee Watson, said Friday.“We can still march from our porches,” Watson said. “We can still be involved. We can still celebrate and still recognize Dr. King. But we’re just going to have to do it in a different way.”Mayor Ron Nirenberg...

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Joshua Fechter

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Coronavirus will keep San Antonio’s 2021 MLK March off the streets; major event is going virtual

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