Events to honor Martin Luther King Jr. began today when around 2,000 people attended a breakfast in honor of the slain civil rights leader in Mission Valley.
The Rev. Otis Moss Jr., who worked with both King and his father, was the keynote speaker at the 28th annual YMCA of San Diego Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Human Dignity Awards Breakfast at the Town & Country Resort.
Moss is pastor emeritus at Cleveland's Olivet Institutional Baptist Church and on the White House Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.
More events to honor King are on tap for this weekend.
On Saturday, the 15th annual San Diego Sheila R. Hardin Multicultural Festival is scheduled for 11 a.m. on the Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade, along Harbor Drive near Park Boulevard. Music, food and children's activities will be included.
At 5 p.m. Saturday, the St. Stephen's Cathedral Sunshine Band Choir will present an excerpt from "I Have a Dream'' and other King speeches at the Educational Cultural Complex, 4343 Ocean View Blvd.
A parade along North Harbor Drive, marching from the County Administration Center to Seaport Village, is set to step off at 2 p.m. Sunday.
More events are set for Monday, which will be a holiday for many workers.
At 7 a.m., the 18th annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Breakfast is scheduled at the Joe & Vi Jacobs Center. The keynote speaker for the event hosted by the United African American Ministerial Action Council will be Joanne Bland, founder of the National Voting Rights Museum in Selma, Ala.
At 10 a.m., the 25th annual All People's Celebration will be held, with scheduled remarks by Mayor Bob Filner. The event will take place at the San Diego Public Market, 1735 National Ave.
Also at 10 a.m., the San Diego Blood Bank and radio station Star 94.1 will host a blood drive at the San Diego Hall of Champions in Balboa Park.
