This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

DENVER (KDVR) — An annual Denver tradition is back after being sidelined last year thanks to COVID.

The 37th Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Marade took place in downtown Denver on Monday, but a bill being worked on in Washington took the spotlight as community members marched.

For families around Denver, it was good to be back together celebrating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. but state leaders warn political efforts around the nation could bring one area of King’s progress to a screeching halt.

Hundreds came out to march from City Park to Civic Center Park for the Marade with some younger people saying they wouldn’t miss the event.

“It’s great to see support in the community,” said Columbine High School student Seth Cromwell. “A lot of people come through and we see a lot of different faces and just meet new people and support what’s been built over the years.”

The recognition of the holiday in Colorado took years to come to fruition but finally made it through thanks to the efforts of people like Wilma and her husband Wellington Webb. The former lawmakers are looking to Washington for the holiday this year.

“Two people here today are very important because we need Michael Bennet and we need John Hickenlooper in D.C. tomorrow to cast their votes for the voting rights bill,” said Webb, Denver’s first Black mayor.

U.S. House members passed the Freedom to Vote: John Lewis Act in Congress, but Senate leaders say their body will wait to take up the measure later this week looking to garner enough votes.

While some Republicans have called the effort a power grab, Democrats from Colorado said they are voting for it to make access to the ballot boxes easier.

“The bill is in the Senate right now and all that it does is give people all across the country the right to vote the way people have the right to vote here in Colorado,” Bennet told Marade goers.

While Colorado leaders are not as worried about voting rights at the state level, they are urging Coloradans to reach out to leaders in Washington to make sure those rights are protected.