With shouts of "Yes We Can" sounding from all directions, today was as much about Barack Obama as it was about King, if not more so, on this eve of his presidential inauguration. One Obama T-shirt on sale for $8 summed it up this way: "Rosa SAT so Martin could Walk. Martin WALKED so Obama could Run. Obama RAN so our Children could Fly." Many vendors parked their vehicles behind the crowds and sold other Obama merch from their trunks.
Kids celebrated both the historic occasion and the school holiday. They waved American flags, danced on rafters and munched on bright candy apples. It was very much a family event, as the parade was made up mostly of children and high school marching bands -- and the occasional group of conspiracy theorists.
UPDATE: We've got video from the parade after the jump, and more photos from the parade in our slideshow here.