On Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, more than two hundred Waco residents gathered to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. The MLK Peace March fostered unity through reflection from prominent community leaders, worship, and a shared responsibility to act.
Over the past 27 years, the march has become a longstanding tradition sponsored by the City of Waco, TFNB, Caritas, NeighborWorks, and more.
The event begins with participants marching across the Waco Suspension Bridge while singing African American spirituals, then becomes a town hall where each organization is recognized and delivers a call to action. The event concludes with a gospel extravaganza, which was a celebratory program pulling from the Black Church tradition of gospel music and praise dance to celebrate the King’s work. The organizations present at this year’s March included the Masonic Lodge, the Eastern Stars, the Community Race Relations Coalition (CRRC), the Nation Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and all Greek organizations of the Divine Nine National Pan-Hellenic Council.
The first speaker, Waco NAACP president Peaches Henry, set the tone with a fiery speech. “If we allow our history to be whitewashed or erased, America will never confront its mistakes and will always be reaching back for a past filled with inequality, unfairness, and violence. … So, we must stand and fight for the weakest among us. We must fight,” Henry said.
The rest of the speakers shared similar sentiments, calling for voter participation, immigrants’ rights, increased diversity, and, most importantly, a call to action rather than stagnation. But the most repeated message was one of unity and love.
Many of the speakers recognized that our country faces bittersweet times marked by both sorrow and unity. Amid divisive policies, growing uncertainty within the Department of Education, and intensified ICE enforcement, Americans find themselves drawn together not by celebration, but by shared concern and grief. The once-hopeful America our grandparents knew seems to have become increasingly distant. Yet in these moments, we are reminded that there is unity in our struggle, and hope for the future. Olga Rogers, one of the first Black female graduates from Baylor and president of the Alpha Rho Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., said, “In a world filled with turmoil, some things still transcend our differences, and one of those is the dream.” So, we must work to keep the dream alive.
In these moments, we are reminded that there is unity in our struggle, and hope for the future.
Truett Seminary student and member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., Kendall Petteway reminded us that a hopeful future does not arrive on its own—it requires us. “The present is today. The past has happened; and the future needs us, so it starts with you,” Petteway said.
“If you ask a room full of people, ‘Who here thinks the world needs to be changed?’ every hand will go up. But if I asked who needs to do the changing, half the hands would go down. … Yet you need to ask yourself, ‘What changes do I need to make? Who do I need to love better? And how can I be a better advocate for my community?’” Petteway said.
The MLK Peace March’s keynote speaker and Pleasant Olive Missionary Baptist Church pastor E. Shaun Williams put it perfectly:
“Dr. King called communities to rise above bitterness and become bearers of light in dark places. Honoring Dr. King’s legacy means more than just remembering his words—it means living them out, choosing love over hate, service over selfishness, and hope over despair.”
The MLK Peace March concluded with a gospel extravaganza, which was a joyous way for people of all ages to truly celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.
Several students from Baylor University attended the MLK Peace March. Sethlyn Pappoe, a Prosper junior and member of the Nu Iota chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., said “the event is a great way to unify the community.”
Petteway said, “The ability to march with Blacks, Whites, and Hispanics in 2026 is an important thing that should happen more often.”
All in all, what started as an idea between a few women dedicated to the principles of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.’s motto of being a “community conscious action-oriented organization,” grew into an over two-decade-long tradition, where people of all cultures and beliefs can unite and keep Dr. King’s dream alive and to change our world for the better. How will you contribute to the change? Will you become bearers of light? Or be so disenchanted that you let the dream die?
Keep the dream alive, I say. Work to keep the dream alive.
