SAN ANTONIO \u2013 The city\u2019s annual Martin Luther King Jr. March is set for Jan. 19, with DreamWeek, a separate series of events, running through Jan. 31.<\/p>\n
DreamWeek<\/a> features a speech from Maria Hoenigman with NAMI<\/a>, the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Hoenigman is the director of Outreach and Support for NAMI Greater San Antonio and is one of the speakers for DreamHour.<\/p>\n \u201c[Mental health is] a conversation that needs to happen around many people,\u201d Hoenigman said. \u201cSometimes we see mental health as a luxury, and we think, OK, I don\u2019t have enough money to be able to go to a counselor. We go to the doctor if we\u2019re feeling palpitations or we go to a doctor if our sugar is high, why not go to the doctor if you\u2019re feeling down?\u201d<\/p>\n Hoenigman also spoke about the importance of removing the stigma around mental health conversations in minority communities.<\/p>\n \u201cI think having conversations,\u201d Hoenigman said. \u201cTo be able to give the words and give the education to my community and being able to it to the community that maybe didn\u2019t have those conversations, and they weren\u2019t available to discuss it, or they were told to wash your face, don\u2019t talk about it.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s a stigma Hoenigman wants to get rid of by encouraging people to attend NAMI events or other mental health-centered events, such as those featured during DreamWeek.<\/p>\n DreamWeek leads into the MLK March, which the city\u2019s MLK Commission organizes. Doshie Piper leads that commission as the chair this year and brings years of experience working with the commission to the table of ideas for 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cI marched in 2014,\u201d Piper said. \u201cI think for me at that time, just the various [ways] a community comes together and supports one another, I wanted to be a part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n The MLK March began in 1987 in San Antonio and has remained a longstanding tradition. The MLK Commission secured Olympic All-Around Gold Medalist Gabby Douglas as the keynote speaker and Grammy-winning artist Coco Jones as the headline performer.<\/p>\n \u201cAll of this really is about ensuring our youth\u2019s future,\u201d Piper said. \u201cIn addition to making sure we are commemorating the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.\u201d<\/p>\n Part of the MLK Commission\u2019s work is to raise money for youth scholarships to carry on King\u2019s legacy of giving back.<\/p>\n