Atlanta ? The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s widow called Monday for an end to acrimony in politics as Americans paused to remember the slain civil rights leader.

Coretta Scott King talked last year about avoiding war in Iraq, and her plea for nonviolence returned this year. “Peaceful ends can only be reached through peaceful means,” she said in her annual King Day address.

But this year, with the presidential contest looming, Mrs. King also talked about peace at home.

“The noblest goal is not conquest of enemies but reconciliation with adversaries. We must remember in this election year that Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals, we are all sisters and brothers,” said Mrs. King, speaking at Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King preached until his assassination in 1968.

Mrs. King’s message was conciliatory, but others across the country sprinkled pro-peace words with barbs at President Bush.

Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, at the same service, received a hearty standing ovation when she referred to last week’s protest of the president’s visit to King’s tomb. About 800 protesters said Bush shouldn’t have come because of his policies on the Iraq war, affirmative action and social service funding.

Referring to President Bush, the mayor said, “Perhaps some prefer to honor the dreamer while ignoring or fighting the dream.”

Martin Luther King III, soon to take helm of the King Center, said Bush’s policies would not lead to a safer world. “It’s very sad that we’re engaged in war today,” he said.

“We have to be concerned not just about us, we have to be concerned about all our brothers and sisters throughout our nation and world. How many Iraqi children have been killed?” he said.

Verta Thompson, left, carries her sign past the Capitol during a parade celebrating the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. in Austin, Texas. About 1,500 people marched in the parade Monday, which was the King holiday.