FORT MYERS, Fla. — Hundreds of people hit the streets of downtown Fort Myers Monday to march in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
The annual march began at the Dunbar Jupiter Hammon Library and ended at Centennial Park with a big celebration.
It's the thirty-fifth year the Dunbar Festival Committee brings the community together to remember the civil rights leader's legacy of service, equality, justice, and inclusion for all.
One of those present at the march was Reginald Billups, who founded the Fort Myers Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. march thirty-five years ago.
Billups — who grew up in Birmingham, Alabama — says that as teenager, he was part of the civil rights movement.
“To see how far we’ve evolved from the days when the police we putting hoses on the kids, putting the dogs on the kids, stopping us from demonstrating to now having the police be our escorts is quite an achievement,” said Billups.
"To hold this as a time when we remember the struggles of the civil rights movement is especially meaningful to me.”
Although the nation has come a long way since the civil rights movement, some believe Dr. King’s dream of equality and inclusion is still just a dream.
“We’re still fighting for equality that should have been ours since birth, so Dr. King and the commemoration of this day remind us that we’re still in the struggle,” said James Muwalkkil, President of the Lee County NAACP Chapter.
