The rain held off as thousands of people danced along with rhythmic marchers and colorful floats at the 82nd Annual Bud Billiken Day Parade on Saturday.
It wasn’t until nearly 100 roller skaters rolled down South King Drive that the wind began to pick up. But by then, the four-hour-long parade, the oldest and largest African-American parade in the country — begun in 1929 by Chicago Defender founder Robert S. Abbott — was almost over.
“I remember when Hopalong Cassidy was here,” said Drew Thomas, 68, of Bronzeville, referring to the iconic Western movie hero. “I’ve been coming to the parade for 50 years.”
Mayor Rahm Emanuel was this year’s grand marshal and R&B crooner R. Kelly was honorary grand marshal as the parade kicked off along King Drive from 39th Street to Washington Park.
Politicians including Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle also took to the street for the celebration, alongside dance and drum teams and unicyclists.
A parade favorite was the Jesse White Tumblers.
“The parade gives a chance to show something positive,” said Nathaniel Blackman, 22, whose back flips reached 10 feet high. “A lot of time there’s chaos out here — the kids don’t get to see positive black role models as much as we’d like.”
“It’s history,” added Shirley Henderson, 66, who couldn’t recall the number of Billiken parades she has seen. This year, she brought a daughter and two grandkids for the first time. “I like the parade because it brings people together,” she said. “We can all get along.”
As of late Saturday, one arrest had been made after a scuffle broke out between two performers at the parade, police said. One of the performers was charged with misdemeanor battery.
