The life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his legacy of social justice will take center stage around the CD this weekend, culminating in the annual march from Garfield High School to the Federal Building downtown.

The rally will start at 11 a.m., and the march will start moving toward downtown via Capitol Hill at 12:30.

If you were planning to travel through the area Monday morning, either find another option or simply lace up your shoes and join the march. Buses will be a mess and roads will be closed to non-foot traffic along the route.

The theme of the rally and march is: Let Freedom Ring!

If you can’t wait until Monday to get your MLK celebrations on, Mount Zion Baptist Church will host Martin Luther King, Jr – A tribute to the man and his dream from noon – 1:30 p.m. Friday.

With the Mount Zion Gospel Choir behind him, actor Jim Lucas “chronicles the Civil Rights Movement through the eyes of Dr. King during his twelve years as a Civil Rights leader.” Prelude music begins at 11:30.

Then, Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney will give the keynote address at Sunday’s Share the Dream concert at the nearby Seattle First Baptist Church at Harvard and Seneca on First Hill. The concert starts at 3 p.m. Details from the Emergency Feeding Program, the event’s host:

In 1961, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. made his only visit to Seattle at the invitation of his friend and former Morehouse College classmate, the Rev. Dr. Samuel Berry McKinney. McKinney was King’s lieutenant in the Pacific Northwest and for over fifty years has been a leader on human and civil rights issues in our area. He served as pastor of the Mount Zion Baptist Church of Seattle for forty years (1958-1998), during which time he served the church and community in multiple roles: as pastor, preacher, teacher and community leader. He was a founding member of the Seattle Civil Rights Commission, founded the Seattle Opportunities Industrialization Center and was the first black president of the Church Council of Greater Seattle. Throughout the years, he has worked and continues to work on a number of social justice issues that impact our community.

Dr. McKinney will be delivering the keynote address at the annual “Share the Dream” concert to be held Sunday, January 20, 2013 at 3:00 p.m. at Seattle First Baptist Church (1111 Harvard Avenue in Seattle). He will be reflecting both on how far our society has come since King’s visit as well as how far we have to go to achieve Dr. King’s dream of social and economic equality.

Know of any MLK events in the area we missed? Let us know in the comments below or email [email protected]