Harmonizing Together: The Movement Music Parade *

Presented by the Arkansas Folklife Festival in partnership with the Clinton Presidential Center, the Highlander Research and Education Center, and sponsored by DaTule Artists Collective, the Movement Music Parade celebrates the songs, stories, and traditions that have inspired generations of Arkansans to organize, advocate, and build stronger communities.

Rooted in the themes of the Clinton Center’s Making Amends initiative, the parade honors the role of music in movements for civil rights, women’s rights, labor rights, citizenship, educational equity, and community empowerment. Participants will gather at the Clinton Library before crossing the Arkansas River together in a joyful procession of musicians, cultural groups, community organizations, and community members united through song.

The parade will conclude at the Arkansas Folklife Festival Main Stage, where Arkansas native Nick Shoulders will welcome participants and help launch the day’s festival celebrations. Along the route, participants will experience music that has carried movements forward, from freedom songs and gospel traditions to folk ballads, labor songs, and contemporary expressions of hope and resilience.

The Movement Music Parade is designed to be inclusive and accessible. The procession begins at the Clinton Presidential Library plaza with welcome remarks and context from the Arkansas Folklife Festival, the Highlander Research and Education Center, and the Clinton Presidential Library, with ASL interpretation provided.

On the North Little Rock side of the bridge, accessibility seating will be set up with an ASL interpreter on hand. As the procession comes off the bridge, a song leader will gather the arriving audience in song. Golf carts and a limited number of auxiliary manual wheelchairs will be available throughout the route to support participants with mobility needs.

More than a parade, Harmonizing Together is a living expression of Arkansas’s diverse cultural traditions and a reminder that music remains one of our most powerful tools for bringing people together, telling our stories, and imagining a better future. Join us as we march, sing, and celebrate the music that moves Arkansas forward.