SF’s 2022 MLK Day Festival (Jan. 13-17)

2022 Festival Update – With COVID cases rising, the festival has moved some events online, postponed some events, while other events there is no mentioned one way or the other. As of January 10th, all of the 2022 Martin Luther King, Jr. outdoor events on Monday, January 17th, will continue in-person, with all attendees encouraged to wear masks and to observe social distancing. Check norcalmlkfoundation.org for the latest updates

The Northern California Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Foundation is committed to ensuring the health and safety of attendees at its 2022 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. events.

To that end, we have adjusted our 2022 MLK celebration events to support our region’s efforts in fighting the impacts of the latest COVID-19 transmission during the current omicron wave, while at the same time maintaining our commitment to service and community.

Thursday, January 13, 2022

Toward Justice: MLK Freedom Concert
– January 13, 2022 – 7pm – Herbst Theatre (401 Van Ness, SF)
The evening will feature such performers as gospel luminary Lena Byrd Miles, Naté the Soulsanger, celebrated classical soprano Hope Briggs, REBEL, and Marcus Phillips & Top of the Marc, as well as spoken word artist Shawn William. Free with RSVP

Sunday, January 16, 2022

Grace Cathedral Remembers MLK Jr.
– Sunday, January 16, 2022 – 3-5p – Grace Cathedral, SF
At 3 p.m., there is an Interfaith service at 3 p.m. This annual service gathers local and national interfaith leaders around a theme in Dr. King’s life and work. The MLK2022 theme is “Toward Justice.” At 4 p.m., Clayborne Carson of The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford will moderate a conversation designed to create a space to critique, analyze and thoughtfully question assumptions about King and faith, King and community and King and society, and to ignite greater dialogue and programs of action that will infuse the positive force of justice. And at 5:30 p.m. we will project on the cathedral façade a short selection from the sermon Dr. King preached at Grace Cathedral on Sunday, March 28, 1965 – three days after the march on Selma.

Monday, January 17, 2022

MLK22 Caltrain Celebration Train
– January 17, 2022 – 8:30a-11am, San Jose to San Francisco
Take the Caltrain NorcalMLK Celebration Train to the MLK22 celebration events in San Francisco on Monday, January 17, and honor the life and legacy of Dr. King through exciting activities for all. This free commemorative service is a program of the Northern California Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Foundation, in partnership with Caltrain, and it signals the region’s dedication to continue the service begun by the late Coretta Scott King. The Caltrain NorcalMLK Celebration Train will depart from San Jose’s Diridon Station at 9:30am (65 Cahill St., San Jose  95110), making stops at Palo Alto Station at 9:50am (95 University Ave., Palo Alto  94301) and the San Mateo Station at 10:10am (385 First Ave., San Mateo  94401) before heading in to San Francisco by 10:40am.  Once there, celebrants will be able to immediately take part in the MLK22 March or head directly to Yerba Buena Gardens to take part in a full day of festivities.

MLK22 March & Parade
– January 17, 2022 –  11:00am – SF Caltrain Station – 4th Street@Townsend 
Join thousands in honoring the Selma, Alabama, to Montgomery, Alabama marches and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by experiencing the MLK2019 commemorative march/parade from San Francisco’s Caltrain Station to Yerba Buena Gardens. The march begins at 11:00am on Monday, January 17, and participants are encouraged to arrive early. The 1.5 mile journey crosses the Lefty O’Doul Bridge and stops at Willie Mays Plaza at Oracle Park to commemorate the crossing of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, a symbol of violence and victory in the civil rights movement.

MLK22 Outdoor Music Festival
– January 17, 1:00pm – Esplanade Stage at Yerba Buena Gardens
Enjoy the 12th Annual MLK Music Festival presented by Purple Cherry Productions and Yerba Buena Gardens Festival. The MLK22 Music Festival features Grammy Award Winning artist Tony Lindsay (formerly of Santana), Les Femmes Fatales (of Grammy-winning band Train), and the Hip Hop lyrics from the artists of Hip Hop for Change.

Postponed/Unknown Events for 2022

• Black & Brown Comix Arts Festival – Postponed to 2023
• MLK Labor & Community Breakfast – Postponed to 2023
• MLK Celebration Program at YBCA – Postponed to 2023
• Liberation Film Screenings – January 15, 2022 – Unclear – No specific updates on website yet
• Health & Wellness Festival at Yerba Buena Gardens – January 17, 2022 at 11am – Unclear – no specific updates on website yet and not mentioned at all in recent press release update (no mention of it still taking place, or of it being canceled)