Annual parade celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade made its way through Miami Monday with fanfare from local high school marching bands, fire trucks, food and floats.

The annual parade has been a Miami staple since the 1970s and hundreds turned out for this year’s edition, which lasted from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and closed down Northwest 54th Street from Northwest Seventh to 32nd avenues.

But by late Monday afternoon, the post-parade family festival celebration at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park, 6000 NW 32nd Court, was overshadowed by a shooting of eight people - five teens, three adults - in the park.

Just last year, students from the 5000 Role Models of Excellence project carried eight empty coffins as a message against gun violence and held signs asking the community to “put the guns down.”

This story was originally published January 16, 2017 at 6:51 PM with the headline "Annual parade celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.."