RICHMOND, Ky. (LEX 18) — Despite the snow and frigid temperatures, the Richmond-Madison County chapter of the NAACP held an event as scheduled Monday afternoon to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Dozens of people marched along Main Street in Richmond, as they sang "We Shall Overcome," "Amazing Grace," and other songs that have links to the Civil Rights era.
Reverend Mitchell Brown, the president of the local NAACP branch, said that a member of the organization approached him with the idea of using this year's march as an opportunity to help those who are experiencing homelessness.
"I think [Dr. King] would be glad to know that we are doing something to give back to the community," Rev. Brown said. "To use the holiday to enhance the needs of those who are around us and be supportive of them."
The NAACP chapter partnered with Madison Home Inc., Room in the Inn-Berea, and the Richmond Human Rights Commission for the march.
The organizations encouraged all participants to donate items for those in need. Donations were collected in the parking lot of a church before the march.
Rev. Brown said the weather conditions only amplified the message marchers were trying to convey about the need for housing security.
"The need still goes on," Rev. Brown said. "So it gives us an opportunity to come out in this weather and to make us even more aware of what they're going through."
