HERMISTON, Ore.-Despite near freezing temperatures, the Hermiston community came out to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr with the annual Peace March and celebration on January 19.
“For a quarter of a century we have not just spoken Dr. King’s name, but walked his walk,” said Hermiston Mayor Doug Primmer in explaining how the annual event has grown from a small gathering to a multi-cultural, multi-generational celebration.
The annual event by the Hermiston Cultural Awareness Coalition (HCAC) included speeches, a peace march from the Community Center to City Hall and back, and performances from the Hermiston High School Band.
Zaira Sanchez, of Hermiston, Director of Community Organizing at Oregon Rural Action, reminded those in attendance that it was also a “Day Without an Immigrant,” a time to highlight the contributions of immigrants in society and on the economy.
“Our state is stronger and more resilient thanks to immigrants who do essential work,” said Sanchez, in imploring everyone to come together in solidarity.
Jada Rome, a 2025 WSU graduate and HCAC scholarship recipient recited the poem “Roar” before attendees marched to City Hall, with many carrying signs with civil rights, human rights and pro-immigration slogans on them.
Hermiston’s Annual MLK Day Peace March
Outside City Hall, Hermiston City Manager Byron Smith spoke of the hard issues confronting society and challenging us as individuals.
“How do we deal with that? How do we find the strength to get through?” said Smith, before sharing that he tries to be a little better each day, believing that if we do that as individuals, it builds community and spreads to the country and world.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy,” said Smith, reciting a famous quotation of Dr. King’s.
Marchers then sang “We Shall Overcome” before walking back to the Community Center.
A Lesson in Tolerance
Back in the Community Center, attendees enjoyed food courtesy of Rogers Toyota and had the opportunity to hear more speakers and performances from the Hermiston High School Band.
Port of Umatilla General Manager Kim Puzey spoke of growing up in Utah in the 1950’s and 1960’s and of going to work with his father one day.
Puzey recalled meeting his father’s friends and co-workers, including Al Daniels, the first Black man he ever met, as well as a man from Mexico and a member of the Navajo Nation.
When Puzey’s father died in 1963, the three men served as pallbearers, chosen by his mother because of their friendship with his father.
The quiet example of his father’s friendships has stayed with Puzey for most of his life, reinforced by the teachings of Dr. King.
“I think about Martin Luther King today, about judging people by the content of their character and I think of those men,” said Puzey.
A Call to Action
Rodney Outlaw, an educator, community activist, and author, who was recently elected to the Walla Walla City Council, delivered the keynote address.
“We do not gather today simply to remember history,” said Outlaw. “We gather because history is calling on us again. The question before us is not what Dr. King said, but what this generation will do?”
Outlaw then spoke about how the Civil Rights movement never ended because injustice doesn’t disappear, but rather evolves, and how the current moment feels familiar, before extolling those in attendance to act.
“Dr. King would not ask us to quote him, he would ask us to move beyond the fear and silence,” Outlaw said. “Let us rise-not as spectators of history, but as its authors.”
Honoring the legacy of Dr. King
HCAC, formerly the Black International Awareness Club, is a cultural diversity organization dedicated to supporting diversity and equality in the Greater Hermiston area.
Each year HCAC awards scholarships to local high school seniors hoping to promote cultural diversity and awareness in their communities, and the 2026 recipients were honored on Monday.
Aviana Navejar and Jocelyn Love Torres of Hermiston High School, and Kiera Sharp from Stanfield Secondary School each received $1,000 scholarships.
HCAC meets the second Saturday of each month at the Hermiston United Methodist Church. More information about the organization is available online or by contacting Dave Gracia, HCAC President at 541.571.7874.
