Colorado’s political leaders joined hundreds who took to the streets of Denver on Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day during the city’s 37th annual “marade” in honor of the civil rights leader.

Denver’s marade – a combination of march and parade – is one of the largest MLK Day celebrations in the country. The event began in front of the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial statue in City Park and ended in Civic Center Park outside of the Capitol.

“There is a lot of work in front of us to achieve Dr. King’s vision for everyone, one of inclusion, one of equality,” Gov. Jared Polis said. “Today and every day are a moment of reflection on, yes, how far we’ve come since the days of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. … but also, how far we have to go.”

U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennet called for the protection of voting rights and the passage of the Freedom To Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would expand access to the ballot box and raise the bar for some states to change voting laws. Supporters say the legislation would also protect election officials from undue partisan influence. The Senate is set to begin debating the bills on Tuesday.

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock echoed the sentiment during his own version of King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, calling for Denverites to use King’s lessons to fight for a better country, instead of allowing it to get worse.

“Our nation has been swallowed by anger, hate, disgust. … We have gone backwards,” Hancock said. “I have a dream today that we speak loud from Colorado and say to all those states and to our members of Congress: Stop playing games with our right to abide to the ballot box and to our right to vote in this nation.”

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Former state Rep. Wilma Webb helped to create Denver’s marade in 1985, the same year MLK Day became a state holiday in Colorado, thanks to a bill she introduced. Webb and her husband – former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb – introduced the bill seven times from 1968 to 1984 before it was passed.

“This was a hard fought for holiday,” Webb said during the marade. “But the things that Dr. King stood for, the generations he has already touched, it has made a world of difference in the lives of us all.”

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Participants marched more than two miles down East Colfax Avenue, following marching bands and dance groups. Most attendees were families, with hundreds of young children accompanying their parents, brandishing signs including “Black Lives Matter,” “protect our vote” and “keep the dream alive,” in addition to quotes and photos of King.

In addition to young children, teenagers also attended the event, using their day off from school to celebrate the life and legacy of the iconic activist.

“As the Black youth of today, we are the children that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream for,” said Dahni Austin, a student at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Early College. “It’s our responsibility to carry the torch. … We cannot and will not allow tomorrow’s children to live in a world without justice.”

Rather than only honoring King, many speakers described MLK Day as a day of action to achieve King’s dream of equality. Speakers heavily focused on voting rights, denouncing recent laws passed in numerous states that they argue limit voting access.

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Also announced during the marade was a new education initiative from Colorado’s MLK Day holiday commission, called the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Nonviolent Social Justice Movement. Every time the curriculum is adopted, a donation will be made to a scholarship fund to send local students to historically Black colleges and universities.

Other notable attendees at the marade included U.S. Reps. Joe Neguse and Jason Crow, state Rep. Leslie Herod, former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, Denver Clerk and Recorder Paul López, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman and University of Colorado President Todd Saliman.

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