CHICAGO (WLS) — ABC7 Chicago is highlighting the exciting summer activities and back-to-school festivities that are part of a cherished Chicago tradition: the annual Bud Billiken Parade.
ABC7’s Samantha Chatman reported live from the Bud Billiken Parade VIP Breakfast on Saturday morning.
The 96th Bud Billiken Parade, recognized as the nation’s largest African American parade, will be broadcast live on ABC7 and streamed on abc7chicago.com on Saturday, August 9, from 10 a.m. to noon. It will also be available through ABC7’s Connected TV Apps on platforms such as Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV, and Roku.
ABC7’s Terrell Brown and Karen Jordan showed us what’s going on along the Bud Billiken Parade route on Saturday morning.
Attracting over a million onlookers, the Bud Billiken Parade is the oldest and most extensive African American parade in the United States. Every year in August, it serves as a day of festivities and family unity, celebrating the start of the school year for families across Chicago.
With over 1 million spectators, the Bud Billiken Parade holds the distinction of being the oldest and biggest African American parade in the nation.
The event will begin at 10 a.m. at 39th Street and Martin Luther King Drive, with the grand marshal leading the parade south along King Drive, passing through Washington Park and ending at Garfield Boulevard.
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About ABC7/WLS-TV Chicago
ABC7/WLS-TV Chicago stands as the leading news provider and most-viewed TV station in the area, boasting decades of top-rated newscasts and a dominant social media presence with over 2.6 million followers on Facebook. ABC7 Eyewitness News delivers breaking news, investigative reports, weather forecasts, politics, traffic updates, and sports coverage to the Chicago region and northwest Indiana through multiple platforms. Honored as Best News Operation by the Associated Press for four consecutive years, ABC 7 Eyewitness News produces the “Chicago Proud” series, highlighting local heroes in the greater Chicago area. The station also offers the city’s highest-rated New Year’s Eve special, the “Magnificent Mile Lights Festival” holiday kickoff, shared nationally, and the acclaimed series “Our Chicago,” celebrating the city’s diversity and contributions from the Black, Hispanic, Asian, LGBTQ+ communities, among others. “Windy City Weekend” is aired every Friday, offering entertainment and updates on local happenings. ABC 7 uniquely broadcasts parades that represent Chicago’s cultural heritage. The station also hosts town halls on social issues and offers political candidate debates to keep the electorate informed. ABC7’s community outreach includes annual collaborations with the Red Cross for major blood drives and efforts to raise over $1.5 million for local food banks.
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