MOBILE, Ala. (WPMI) — Today’s black history spotlight is not a person, but the once thriving hub of the African American community in Mobile.
Davis avenue, now named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, in the 1940’s – 1970’s was known as “Black Main Street.” It was the hub of black- owned businesses and venues. There were movie theaters, grocery stores, funeral parlors, churches, barbershops, hairdressers, tailors, restaurants, pool halls, record stores… a plethora of businesses. Urban renewal in the 1970’s divided the community and removed more than half of the businesses and resources on the avenue.
Every Lundi Gras, the MLK business and civic organization sponsors a parade called the Krew of the Avenue that’s largely made up of children and young people. It’s followed by the MLK Monday mystics. It’s a reminder of what the Avenue used to be and that black businesses still exist.