AP PHOTOS: King celebrated against backdrop of concern over recent deaths of unarmed black men

Tributes and rallies were held around the U.S. on Monday to celebrate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.

In cities nationwide, demonstrators also used the occasion to protest inequality and injustice. This year's King holiday followed several high-profile incidents in which unarmed black men were killed by police.

Americans should act against injustice — but they should remember King's message of nonviolence, his daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, told a gathering in Atlanta. "He taught us that we still have a choice to make: nonviolent coexistence or violent co-annihilation," she said.

Here's a collection of photographs chronicling the holiday.