Since the summer of 1929, it’s been a family tradition on the South Side. The Bud Billiken Parade draws thousands every year to the Bronzeville and Washington Park neighborhoods to help kick off the upcoming school year.

“It’s fun. It’s vibrant. It’s community at its best,” one woman said.

A South Side tradition, the Bud Billiken Parade fills the streets and the senses. No matter the view along King Drive in the Bronzeville neighborhood, everyone can feel the vibe.

“I mean, the vibe by itself, you can feel the energy in the air,” one man said.

“It means everything, because it takes me back to when I was a kid marching through here about 65 years ago,” another man said.

Still marching on after 96 years, the Bud Billiken Parade is the second biggest parade in the country. Nearly 200 marching bands, drill teams, dance teams, and tumblers march together along a two-mile route.

“It is culture, it is fabulous, it is history, and you need to be here, you need to experience this,” one woman said.

If you’re a kid, the parade is a great place to be; a solid start to the day for kids who will be starting a new school year soon.

“The kids love it. It’s definitely for the kids,” one woman said.

Even grown-ups will never grow tired of a tradition like this.

“It’s all the memories that keeps me coming back,” one man said.

After the parade, thousands gather in Washington Park for a picnic and festival featuring free hairstyling, haircuts, school supplies, and health screenings; along with crafts, vendors, college admissions representatives, and a job fair.

The parade that began in the summer of 1929 continues to embody Chicago’s Black history and works to empower youth, especially on the South Side.

It goes back to the early 1900s, when the Billiken was actually a charm doll that represented good luck and fortune, and was also seen as the guardian of children. It got attached to Buddy, or Bud, which became the mascot.

It’s one of the biggest and oldest African American parades in the United States, and always an indication that the start of the school year is around the corner.

Chicago Public Schools students will go back to school on Aug. 18.

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