One of the area's biggest holiday traditions has fallen victim to the COVID-19 pandemic and has to adjust.
America's Thanksgiving Parade, which usually draws up to a million people to the streets of downtown Detroit and is televised across North America, will hold a virtual march Thursday morning, with paradegoers asked to stay home due to coronavirus control guidelines.
"We will deliver a beautiful broadcast to everyone in Detroit and across the country," read a statement from the Parade Company, which puts the parade on. "The broadcast will be a different and meaningful show with no public access. The format continues to evolve in this unprecedented time. This tradition is part of our lives and the broadcast will reach millions in the safety of their home."
According to WDIV-TV Channel 4, which will broadcast and live-stream the event, the theme of the parade is “We Are One Together”, a tribute to those essential workers on the frontlines of the pandemic.
The parade will be broadcast on television station WDIV, Channel 4, and live-streamed on the station's website.
The march began back in 1924 as a marketing tool for J.L. Hudson's, Detroit's top department store, which had its giant flagship store on Woodward Avenue. Since then, the parade has grown into one of the biggest marches of the year, rivalling the Macy's Parade in New York City.
Detroit's other big Thanksgiving tradition goes on as usual, as the Lions host the Houston Texans at Ford Field, but with limited fans in the seats. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m and the game will be broadcast on CBS.