Bud Billiken Parade and Picnic

Chicago Department of Human Resource float in the 1973 parade. Photo by John H. White.

Barack Obama float for 2004 U.S. Senate race in the 2004 parade.

Miss Black Illinois in the 2004 parade.

U.S. Navy band marches in the 2008 parade.

Anti-violence group for a Chicago high school in the 2008 parade.

Hillcrest High School marching band in the 2008 parade.

Bud Billiken is a fictional character created in 1923 by Abbott, who had been considering adding a youth section to the Chicago Defender newspaper. While dining at a Chinese restaurant he noticed a Billiken. Some of the early Billiken columns were written by Willard Motley, who later became a prominent novelist. During the early 1930s, names of international youth were listed in the "Bud Billiken" section of the newspaper every week. Between 1930 and 1934, approximately 10,000 names appeared and were archived in the Carter G. Woodson Regional Library of the Chicago Public Library.[18]

During the Great Depression, Abbott featured the Bud Billiken character in his newspaper as a symbol of pride, happiness and hope for black residents.[19] The character gained prominence in a comic strip and the Chicago Defender newspaper.[19] Although the character was created in 1923, the parade did not begin until 1929, when David Kellum initiated it as a celebration of the "unity in diversity for the children of Chicago". It has since grown to become a locally televised event and the second largest parade in the nation.[18]

The parade, which began on August 11, 1929,[4] now includes politicians, beauty queens, celebrities, musical performers, and dozens of marching, tumbling and dancing groups.[19] It has grown from a locally sponsored event to one with major corporate presence and is seen as a signal of the impending end of summer and beginning of the new school year.[19] As such the parade sponsors raise money for college scholarships for local youth.[19] The parade route has changed over the years. The original route was along Michigan Avenue beginning at 31st Street, then turned east into Washington Park. Complaints for north–south traffic flow caused rerouting the parade route to South Parkway (now named Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive), which runs directly into the park. At various times, street repairs have necessitated use of the Michigan route, but the current route is now the King Drive route.[4] Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll of Amos 'n' Andy were the first guests in the first parade. Robert S. Abbott led the first parade in his Rolls-Royce. Dr. Marjorie Stewart Joyner, president of the Chicago Defender Charities, Inc., organized the parade for over 50 years. Numerous high-profile celebrities and dignitaries have attended the parade over the years, including U.S. President Harry S. Truman,[20] Michael Jordan, Barack Obama, Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Duke Ellington, Adelaide Hall,[21] Oprah Winfrey, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Lena Horne, James Brown, Ethel Waters, Cab Calloway, Paul Robeson, Chaka Khan and Billie Holiday.[19][4] Truman rode alongside John H. Sengstacke, who was Abbott's nephew and took over the Chicago Defender in 1948, and Mayor Richard J. Daley in the 1956 Parade.[22] Recent parades have featured popular musical acts as concert performers at the post-parade picnic. In 2006, approximately 26 million people saw the parade,[23] including 25 million television viewers and 1.2 million attendees.[7] The 2006 parade included 74,000 participants and 160 floats and vehicles.[7] The 2008 parade was dedicated to actor and comedian Bernie Mac (star of The Bernie Mac Show)[24] and a native of Chicago; he died an hour before the start of the parade. In 1993, a request by a black LGBT group to participate in the parade was declined by the organizers. Following legal action and the involvement of Lambda Legal, the Ad Hoc Committee of Proud Black Lesbians and Gays was allowed to participate in the parade the following year.[25][26] The 2020 parade, marking its 91st year, saw the first-ever cancellation, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A "scaled down" event was held in 2021.[27]

Illinois Governor Dan Walker at the 1973 parade. Photo by John H. White.

The parade has categorized contests for participants such as best float, and best marching band.[28] It takes place in Chicago's Bronzeville neighborhood, starting at 35th Street [29] and Dr. Martin Luther King Drive at the southern border of the Douglas community area, south of the landmark Victory Monument. It continues south to 55th Street in Washington Park. This route covers approximately 2 miles (3.2 km). This route takes the parade through the Grand Boulevard and Washington Park community areas.[30]

The Chicago Defender Charities underwent a major restructuring in 2017. Myiti Sengstacke–Rice is Board President of the Chicago Defender Charities and Bud Billiken Parade Chair. Sengstacke–Rice is the great-grandniece of Robert Sengstacke Abbott, granddaughter of John Herman Henry Sengstacke, founder of the Chicago Defender Charities and daughter of the late famed photojournalist, Robert Abbott Sengstacke.

• Bud Billiken Club

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bud Billiken Parade and Picnic.

• Official site
• Encyclopedia of Chicago entry