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Cold Didn't Keep Away The MLK, Jr. Crowd

Ann Thompson
/
WVXU
Participants bundled up and marched from the Freedom Center and Fountain Square to Music Hall for a MLK program.

Hundreds of people braved single-digit temperatures Monday marching from the Freedom Center and Fountain Square to Music Hall for a 90-minute celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.

This year's event focused on attracting more young people with music and poetry.

WordPlay Poet Lacy "Asylum" Robinson, a 2015 Aiken New Tech High School graduate and the champion of the Louder Than a Bomb youth poetry slam, wowed the crowd  with his spoken word presentation. He wanted to know "How the dark shade of my skin makes me a villain? How does the lighter shade of your skin make you a victim? ...my objective is to stop the killing."

Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley addressed the violence, while speaking at Music Hall. He explained to the crowd that earlier in the day UC had reached a settlement with the Sam DuBose family.  DuBose, a black man, was shot and killed by a white University of Cincinnati police officer during a traffic stop. The former officer, Ray Tensing is charged with murder.  His trial is pending. Cranley said, "The city will be continuing to work with UC to make sure they will go through the kinds of police reforms that Cincinnati went through in 2001 and 2002."

Credit Ann Thompson / WVXU
/
WVXU
Tracie Hunter demonstrators disrupted the MLK program for about 5 minutes in the balcony.

There was a brief delay in the MLK program,  when suspended  juvenile judge, Tracie Hunter's supporters used a megaphone to disrupt the celebration. Hunter is scheduled to go on trial tomorrow.  Master of Ceremonies, WLWT Anchor Curtis Fuller, refocused the message and the demonstrators were forced to leave.

Ann Thompson has decades of journalism experience in the Greater Cincinnati market and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her reporting.