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Updated Aug 28, 2021 - Politics & Policy

In photos: Thousands descend on D.C. to march for voting rights

Erin Doherty
Demonstrators hold signs while walking during the March On for Washington and Voting Rights rally in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021

Demonstrators hold signs while walking during the March On for Washington and Voting Rights rally in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 28. Photo: Pete Kiehart/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Thousands of people marched in cities across the United States on Saturday to urge the Senate to pass voting rights legislation and put pressure on state legislatures to expand voting access, NBC reports.

Driving the news: The March On for Voting Rights took place in D.C., Atlanta, Miami, Phoenix and other cities "to demand that elected officials protect democracy, denounce voter suppression and ensure fair, easy access to the vote for all through the passage of comprehensive federal legislation," per the group's website.

The big picture: The march falls on the 58th anniversary of the March on Washington, when more than 200,000 marched in D.C. and heard Martin Luther King Jr. deliver his "I Have a Dream" speech.

  • The marchers in Washington will convene at the Lincoln Memorial —where King delivered his speech in 1963.
In photos
Protesters pass the White House during a rally to demand protection for voting rights.
Protesters pass the White House during a rally to demand protection for voting rights on Aug. 28. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Demonstrators hold signs while walking during the March On for Washington and Voting Rights rally in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021.
Demonstrators hold signs while walking during the March On for Washington and Voting Rights rally in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 28. Photo: Pete Kiehart/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Protesters rally to demand protection for voting rights on the 58th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, in Washington, DC, on August 28, 2021
Protesters rally to demand protection for voting rights on the 58th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington on Aug. 28. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
A general view during the March On For Voting Rights at The King Center on August 28, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia.
A general view during the March On For Voting Rights at the King Center on Aug. 28 in Atlanta. Photo: Derek White/Getty Images
The Rev. Al Sharpton (3rd L, front row), U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) (4th L, front row) and U.S. Rep. Al Green (D-TX) (R), participates in a March On For Voting Rights.
The Rev. Al Sharpton (center), Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) (second from right) and Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) participate in the March On For Voting Rights Aug. 28 in Washington, D.C. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images
Martin Luther King III speaks during the March On for Washington and Voting Rights rally in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021.
Martin Luther King III speaks during the March On for Voting Rights rally in Washington, D.C., on Saturday. Photo: Pete Kiehart/Bloomberg via Getty Images
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