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How to observe MLK Day 2025 in Cincinnati

Cincinnati's 48th annual MLK Day march departs the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center on its way through downtown to Washington Park
Nick Swartsell
/
WVXU
Cincinnati's 48th annual MLK Day march.

Cincinnati is gearing up for multiple celebrations of Martin Luther King Jr.'s life Monday.

The day starts off with the "King Legacy Celebration: Passing the Torch," featuring music and dance performances. Dr. Wendy Ellis will give a keynote speech honoring the Civil Rights leader's legacy. It kicks off at 8 a.m. at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. You can find tickets here.

Then, the MLK Jr. Coalition will host a march from the Freedom Center to Music Hall at 10:30 a.m. The MLK Coalition's Bertha Davis says the march is in its 50th year.

"Cincinnati, Ohio, was one of the first — even before MLK Day became an official holiday — to start a commemorative march in honor of Dr. King and to reflect on the work he had done and the work we will continue," she said.

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Following the march, the coalition will host a program of speeches at noon at Music Hall on the theme of "Jubilee: For MLK Jr's Beloved Community." The Ohio State University history professor Hasan K. Jeffries will deliver the keynote speech. There also will be musical performances and a superhero-themed program for children presented by the Bootsy Collins Foundation.

At 3 p.m., another event kicks off at the Church of the Resurrection in Bond Hill. It will honor 10 Cincinnatians who are keeping MLK's legacy alive. Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney and business leader Eric Kearney will deliver keynote speeches at the ceremony.

Nick has reported from a nuclear waste facility in the deserts of New Mexico, the White House press pool, a canoe on the Mill Creek, and even his desk one time.