Occupiers March for MLK Day

Protesters also hold rallies against Voter ID laws
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 16, 2012 5:13 PM CST
Protesters Hold 'Occupy the Dream' March on New York for Martin Luther King Day
"Occupy the Dream" demonstrators roll a gigantic die at a rally in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. outside of the Federal Reserve January 16, 2012 in New York City.   (Getty Images)

Martin Luther King day inspired an Occupy march on New York and more traditional remembrances across the US today. Among the events:

  • Hundreds of Occupiers staged an "Occupy the Dream" march on Manhattan, stopping to chant, "The banks got bailed out, we got sold out." At least two protesters were arrested, MSNBC reports. "Dr. King dedicated the last months of his life to planning a campaign for the right of all to a decent-paying job," Occupy said in a statement.

  • Schoolchildren played "We Shall Overcome" on violins at New York's African Burial Grounds, where Occupy started its protest, the New York Daily News reports.
  • President Obama, Michelle, and daughter Malia built a reading nook at the library of a mostly black school in Washington, Reuters reports. "For us to be able to come together as a community ... that's ultimately what makes us the strongest, most extraordinary country on earth," the president said.
  • At South Carolina's capitol building and the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, speakers denounced voter ID laws that they said would disenfranchise black voters.
(More Martin Luther King Jr. stories.)

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