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March on Washington; Unite for common good
On Aug., 28, 1963, thousands of people gathered on the Mall in Washington, D. C. to demand the na
tion take action on civil rights. Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his “I Have A Dream” speech to the as
sembly. Reporter Newspapers asked Rep. John Lewis of Atlanta, the last surviving speaker from that day, to
describe the event and what it means to people in 2013- We also asked three of our local high school interns
to describe how they view the March on Washington a half-century later.
The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, on Aug. 28, 1963, was one of this nation’s fin
est hours. The American people pushed and pulled, they struggled, suffered, and some even died, to
demonstrate their desire to see a more fair, more just society.
Leading up to the March on Washington, there had been an unbelievable amount of action on
the part of the Movement. People were sitting-in at lunch counters, standing-in at theaters. They
were beaten, arrested and jailed by the hundreds and thousands by state and local government offi
cials. They were standing in unmovable lines all across the South trying to register and vote. Martin
Luther King Jr., Rev. Ralph Abernathy, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth and other leaders had been arrested
and jailed.
Those of us in the movement made a decision that we had to do what we could, give our very lives
if necessary, to demonstrate that equal justice was imperative to democracy. The morning of the march
we met with Democratic and Republican leaders on Capitol Hill on the House and Senate side. We planned to leave the Senate
and lead the people to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. But when we stepped out into the streets, we saw hundreds and thou
sands of people pouring out of the train station.
They were black and white, Latino, Asian and Native American. There were members of every faith, speakers of many differ
ent languages. We were supposed to be leading them, but the people were leading us, and they literally pushed us down Consti
tution Avenue, up to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
Dr. King inspired all of us that day with words that embodied what we all believed. He was the last speaker, but I was num
ber six. I was the young upstart who said, “We march today for jobs and freedom, but we have nothing to be proud of for hun
dreds and thousands of our brothers are not here, for they are receiving starvation wages or no wages at all....I said, “We must
seek more than civil rights; we must work for the community of love, peace and true brotherhood. Our minds, souls and hearts
cannot rest until freedom and justice exist for all people.”
We have come a great distance since that day, but we are not finished yet. Many of the issues that gave rise to that march are
still pressing needs in our society—violence, poverty, hunger, long-term unemployment, homelessness, voting rights, and the
need to protect human dignity.
What the March on Washington is saying to us today is that we are at our best as a nation when we understand that our dif
ferences do not divide us. We will be at our best when we finally accept that we are one people, one family, the American fami
ly. We all live in the same house, the American house, the world house.
The March on Washington is saying to us today that we can unite for the common good to accomplish great things for all
Americans and not just for some.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis represents Georgia’s Fifth District, which includes parts of Buckhead and Brookhaven. Lewis was one of the
speakers during the March on Washington. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have A Dream” speech to the marchers that day.
Reporter Newspapers interns discuss 1963 march
U.S. REP.
JOHN LEWIS
GUEST COLUMN
Fifty years ago, hundreds of
thousands of people marched on
Washington for civil rights. Mar
tin Luther King Jr. gave his most
famous speech during that march.
But, while we’ve come a long
way thanks to the work of those be
fore us, and Aug. 28 is an anniver
sary to celebrate, we can’t rest: 50
years later, we find a different set
of rights under attack, while un
der our noses key civil rights legis
lation is being struck down. Dark
times may be coming, but I believe
we can stop them. We just need to
keep fighting.
—Blake Flournoy
Riverwood Inti. Charter HS
In 1963, when a sea of people gath
ered for the March on Washington, they
did so in a great public expression of
their First Amendment rights. While my
generation faces new issues of social jus
tice, what still resonates today and stands
to be learned from that event in histo
ry is that every American, regardless of
race, gender, and even age, can generate
change through activism and the use of
constitutionally-protected rights.
The Civil Rights Movement showed
that the Constitution is not merely a
set of words to be memorized in a class
room—it is an adaptable tool for creat
ing a better America.
—Mollie Simon
Chamblee Charter HS
One of the
most memora
ble moments
from elemen
tary school
was learning
about Martin
Luther King
Jr.’s “I Have
A Dream”
speech. His
words have in
fluenced mil
lions, and with each successive generation, his
dream becomes ever more of a reality. While we
have come so far in 50 years, there is still work
to do. Discrimination based upon religion, sex
and sexual orientation is still rampant in the
United States and beyond.
MLK was just a single figure who repre
sented countless people who chose to fight
discrimination in their everyday lives. We
can continue to shape society with each pass
ing day, if we continue to allow ourselves to
be inspired by the dream of equality.
—Elizabeth Wilkes
Northsprings Charter HS
8 | AUG. 23 — SEPT. 5, 2013 | www.ReporterNewspapers.net
