Our Route
The first ever Race for Justice will take place that the beautiful Norton Sports and Learning Complex. Our distances are intended to honor Breonna Taylor and continue to call for justice for her. We are asking participants to run/walk 26 lap - one lap for each year of Breonna's life - or, to run/walk 1.3 miles to remember that she was killed on March 13th and has yet to see justice. Participants will also see justice booths and speakers as well as multiple artistic tributes to Breonna Taylor created by local students and other artists. And of course, participants will get to enjoy the fun spaces at the SLC like rock climbing and bowling.
Our original vision however was a full 26.2 mile marathon that toured multiple historic sites of justice in our city. Unfortunately, we were unable to obtain permitting for this route this year. But, the Race for Justice is also a metaphorical marathon. This year is our first step. We hope the Race for Justice continues to build success so that in years to come we are able to offer a course that realizes our vision and inspires runner with the history of our city. Read more about our vision below.
Long Term Vision
Our marathon is a reminder to all that Black folks had to run for freedom. It wasn’t given directly to us. And, we are still marching for justice today in many different ways. A marathon also reminds us that a group with many different passions can still run the same course toward justice.
Many of our Future Ancestors have been inspired by Breonna Taylor and the movement that followed. Justice for her still has not been served. So, we are dedicating our full marathon, 26 miles, as a celebration of her life -- one mile for each year of Breonna’s life, because each Life is meaningful! We are still running for justice for Breonna. We hope this race will inspire our community to keep fighting for justice for her and all the other victims of police violence.
This year, our route will take participants on a journey between two historic sites that will teach racers that Louisville’s history is OUR history and inspire them to make change for the better. The route loops around Shawnee Park - the location of the former Fontaine Ferry Park. Fontaine Ferry Park was an amusement park segregated for whites only. For many years, the Blacks members of our community were prevented from enjoying the park.
In contrast, participants will start and end at the Louisville Urban League’s Norton’s Sports and Learning Complex (SLC) - a site of the city coming together under the leadership of Black Louisvillians to restore land to Black ownership and create a $50 million investment in the West End. We are also working to identify other historic sites along the route that represent the life of important African Americans in our history here in Louisville. A full route map will be posted soon.
Our original vision was for the race to pass by over a dozen historical sites we identified downtown Louisville so runners could be inspired by our history. This would include the recent site of Injustice Square and the Unknown Project. Our race also originally included a mini-marathon option and a 3 mile option to further honor Breonna’s life. 13 miles for the day she was taken from us brutally! And a 3 mile race to represent the month she passed away. Unfortunately, the police are no longer supporting larger events. So, we had to change the distances and location of the route. But we have tried hard to maintain as much symbolism as possible. We hope future routes for future races still use inspiring symbolism and are able to feature more of our city’s rich history of justice.
