January 13, 2022
By Danny J. Bakewell, Jr.
Executive Editor
Because of the recent surge in COVID cases throughout Los Angeles County, MLK Day events and Black History Month events are all being cancelled or postponed.
Inglewood was forced to cancel its 37th Annual Martin Luther King Day event, which was to be held on January 18, because of COVID concerns.
In addition to the Inglewood event, the 37th annual Kingdom Day Parade has also been cancelled.
In a press release issued by the organizers, the parade announced "Out of extreme caution and concern for the survival of our public, based on the new COVID-19 data officially released today by Dr. Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Health, which now reveals the severity of serious spikes in hospitalization in Los Angeles, the entire Board of Directors of the Kingdom Day Parade voted unanimously to take the drastic action of canceling this year's parade on the street in order to avoid even the faintest possibility of sponsoring a super spreader event.”
The City of Pasadena also announced on Friday, January 7, their decision to cancel their annual Black History Day Parade, scheduled for February 19, 2022. However, Pasadena is still planning to host other Black History Day events. “COVID has had so many unanticipated impacts. If the parade was canceled to keep the community safe then, it is wise. I hope some of the other activities the Black History Parade committee has planned regarding important aspects of Black History Month, will go forward. It is my understanding that they will take place,” stated Pasadena City Councilman John J. Kennedy.
In addition to the canceled events due to the strain of COVID in Los Angeles and nationally, several other events have been postponed for later in the year and no new dates have been announced. The City of Long Beach announced it would be postponing its Black History Day Parade and other events with no new date announced as of Sentinel press time.
The 30th Annual Pan African Film Festival (PAFF), which was originally scheduled to take place Feb 8 – 21, has been postponed. Organizers released a statement saying, “Due to the current rise of COVID cases in Los Angeles County, the Pan African Film and Arts Festival (PAFF) has announced that the festival will not take place in February as anticipated.
According to the PAFF team, the festival is exploring options to reschedule its 30th annual celebration for later in the year, April 19 - May 1, in Los Angeles at its flagship venues, the Directors Guild of America, Cinemark Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza 15 and XD.” If the event will take place as an in-person event or virtually as it was last year is still to be determined. You can follow the status of the event at www.paff.org or check the Sentinel website for updates.
For additional closure updates, check the L.A. Sentinel website at lasentinel.net