WASHINGTON — On Friday, on the 57th anniversary of the March on Washington and Martin Luther King Junior’s “I have a dream” speech, a march will once again be happening. This march was organized after the death of George Floyd and was announced at Floyd’s memorial by Rev. Al Sharpton earlier this year, WJLA reported.
The march is meant to “restore and recommit to the dream Dr. Marin Luther King, Jr. defined,” CNN reported.
As at past events, there will be speakers at the Lincoln Memorial who will then march to the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial.
But unlike on past marches, this one will be limited due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“So it’s not a big march that was initially envisioned, but a seated event where the number of seats would be limited, people would be checked going into the seated area and it would be much smaller attendance,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said, according to WJLA.
People from high-risk states had been asked to quarantine for two weeks in D.C. before attending.
WUSA estimates 10,000 people will attend despite the limitations. Tickets are required.
Also to keep the number of participants lower because of the pandemic, there will also be a virtual march held at the same time.
Information on that event can be found here.
More than 200,000 took part in the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, CNN reported.
Click here for the schedule of events that start Thursday at 8 p.m.
Floyd’s family members are expected to speak, as are family members of Breonna Taylor and Eric Garner. Members of Congress, Sharpton, Martin Luther King III and civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump are all scheduled to speak as well, WUSA reported.
Black Lives Matters has been invited to march and will be holding a virtual conference, according to WUSA.