The MLK Day weekend features events across Georgia

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A host of events across Georgia will take place in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

With Martin Luther King Jr. Day approaching on Jan. 16, several events celebrating the life and work of King will take place throughout Georgia, the home state of the late civil rights activist.

On top of all the MLK Day events taking place, President Joe Biden is visiting Atlanta on Saturday at Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King served as co-pastor. The church is honoring King with a service where Biden will speak. U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, who serves as the head pastor of the church, will be in attendance as well.

Here are a few MLK Day events happening across Georgia:

Atlanta

• The King Center, established by Coretta Scott King, will host The 2023 Beloved Community Awards on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 7:30 p.m. at The Hyatt Regency in Atlanta. It will recognize those taking leadership over social justice matters “in the tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”
• You can pay a visit to Atlanta’s National Center for Civil and Human Rights to see the Morehouse College Martin Luther King, Jr. Collection, consisting of papers and artifacts belonging to King.
• The Atlanta History Center will pack MLK Day full of activities including civil rights-themed trivia, Freedom Rider simulations on a 1952 Greyhound bus and free access to their many exhibitions. It’s open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Athens-Clarke

• Athens will host their Athens MLK Day of Service on Monday, Jan. 16, where volunteers can commit to a number of services to do. The kickoff event will start at 8:30 a.m. at Clarke Central High School's gym, where volunteers can enjoy refreshments, performances and words from guest speaker Rev. James Kendrick of East Friendship Baptist Church.

Albany

• United Way of Southwest Georgia is holding their MLK Scavenger Hunt event on Monday, Jan. 16 at 10 a.m. in downtown Albany, Ga.

• The Albany Area Chamber of Commerce and Albany State University is partnering with the King day Celebration Committee in hosting the 2023 MLK Dinner on Monday, Jan. 16 at 6 p.m. The event will take place at Albany State University’s West Campus Student Center. Vanessa Harrison, president of AT&T Southeast Coastal States, will be the guest speaker. Information on ticket prices can be found on the site.

Augusta

• Augusta, Ga., in collaboration with the August NAACP, has its annual MLK parade on Saturday, Jan. 14, beginning at 1 p.m. at Dyess Park Community Center.

Macon

• Macon-Bibb county will host its annual MLK Day March on Monday, Jan. 16 at 11 a.m. The event takes place at four different locations:

1. North: Booker T. Washington Community Center (401 Monroe Street)
2. South: Memorial Gym (2465 Second Street)
3. East: Rosa Jackson Recreation Center (1211 Maynard Street)
4. West: Frank Johnson Recreation Center (2227 Mercer University Drive)

After the march everyone in attendance will gather at City Hall to listen to speakers and celebrate the life of King.

• The Tubman African American Museum will be showcasing a new exhibit on Monday, Jan. 16. The museum is also showing The King Movie all day. Visitors who arrive between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m. can attend the MLK Breakfast. Admission to the museum is set at $5.

Marietta

• The Cobb County's NAACP branch and the Cobb County Government are partnering to host the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Monday, Jan. 16 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Jennie T. Anderson Theatre in Marietta, Georgia. All members of the public are free to enjoy entertainment, dances, readings, and musical performances, and the chance to see the distributing of the "Living the Dream" award to a "community member who demonstrates the ideals King exemplified."
• Book’s For Africa’s Atlanta Warehouse is hosting a MLK Day of Service volunteer event where 100 Metro-Atlanta students and other volunteers will sort books being sent to students across Africa. Volunteers will be split into two shifts with the morning shift working from 9 to 11 a.m. and the afternoon shift working from 1 to 3 p.m. This will take place at the Books For Africa warehouse in Marietta, Ga. For more volunteer opportunities at Books for Africa Atlanta, sign up here. 

Savannah

• The Observance Day Association in Savannah, Ga., is hosting its Citywide Memorial Worship Service in honor of MLK Jr. on Sunday, Jan. 15 at 5 p.m. The event will take place at St. Phillip Monumental African Methodist Episcopal Church in Savannah where Rev. Dr. Ephraim D. Stephens, pastor of Bull Swap Baptist Church in South Carolina, will serve as a guest speaker.
• The association also has its annual MLK Jr. parade on Monday beginning at 10 a.m. Information on the parade route can be found here.

Stonecrest

• Volunteers from local organizations will participate in MLK Day Service Project at Flat Rock, home to the oldest African American Community in DeKalb County. The community service projects will take places across the Lyon Farm, Historic Flat Rock Cemetery, and the Flat Rock Archive Museum on Monday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Flat Rock Archive, Inc. in Stonecrest.

Enjoy the holiday!