Civil Rights
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John Miles Lewis Remembered
Congressman and civil rights leader, John Lewis, was remembered today, Thursday, July 30, 2020, at his longtime place of worship, Ebenezer Baptist church. Congressman Lewis, the son of sharecroppers, was born on February 21, 1940 in Pike County, Alabama. Before his service in the House of Representatives, 5th Congressional District of Georgia (1987-2020), he was a civil rights icon. In 1961 Lewis became one of the original Freedom Riders; 13 activists who protested the segregation of interstate transportation facilities, including bus stations, as being unconstitutional. Three former presidents attended Representative Lewis’s funeral; Clinton, Bush and Obama, while President Carter, 95, and his wife, Rosalynn, were unable to attend. The Carter’s…
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Emancipation Proclamation
Juneteenth Emancipation Order June 19, 1865 commemorates the day General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas leading the union occupation force and bringing with them the news of the Emancipation Proclamation. Read more about the holiday of Juneteenth: “Emancipation wasn’t a gift bestowed on the slaves; it was something they took for themselves, …” New York Times Opinion Piece Washington Post Article on George Floyd Protest
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Black History Month
It was Dec. 1, 1955 on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama when Rosa Parks, a NAACP member, bravely refused to allow a white man to have her seat. She refused to be sent to the back of the bus. We find it hard to imagine that one individual in a moment of choice and action can make a difference. We have grown cynical. We have given up before even trying, believing that without wealth, power, and a Super PAC on our team, it is an impossibility that an ordinary person can help facilitate change. And it is true that we are up against an advantaged few that often win…
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Conditions of Hong Kong Reverting to Chinese Rule
Talks began in 1982 between Margaret Thatcher and Deng Xiaoping that would determine the future fate of Hong Kong. Prime Minister Thatcher flew to Peking (Beijing the capital of the People’s Republic of China) in September 1982 in hopes of retaining Hong Kong as British, but she failed in her attempt. Two years later in 1984 the signing between China and Britain of a “Joint Declaration” permitted that China would take back Hong Kong in 1997. Thatcher insisted on the inclusion of certain contingencies, being that during the 50 years following China’s take back of sovereignty, Hong Kong must remain a special administrative region; meaning Hong Kong SAR would be…
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Folk Singer Pete Seeger Dies
Known for such popular hit songs: “If I Had a Hammer,” “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” and “Kisses Sweeter Than Wine” and anthem for civil rights, “We Shall Overcome.” has died at the age of 94. Read More
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Ole Miss Riot
On Oct. 1, 1962 Mississippi University admitted James Meredith; their first black student. This Federally ordered act of integration resulted in a violent mob riot on the campus. Two people were killed and hundreds injured. Mississippi had segregationist laws that Governor Ross Barnett tried to uphold despite President Kennedy’s order to obey the federal law against segregation. The fight to preserve James Meredith’s civil right to attend the University of Mississippi is sometimes referred to as “the last battle of the Civil War”. Learn more about the facts and people involved.
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Remembering Rosa Parks
It was 58 years ago today Dec. 1, 1955 on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama that Rosa Parks, an NAACP member, bravely refused to move to the back of the bus. She refused to allow a white man to have her seat on the bus. We often imagine that one individual citizen of the United States, cannot make a difference. We give up before even trying believing that without large sums of money and powerful political backing it is an impossibility for our simple effort to succeed. Thankfully we have the remarkable example of Rosa Parks. She reminds us of the power one person has to make a stand against social injustice. Her single act of…
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I Have a Dream
Martin Luther King’s Speech: ‘I Have a Dream’ – The Full Text By The Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING Jr. Aug. 28, 1963— abcnews.go.com The Full Text of the Famous Speech by America’s Greatest Civil Rights Icon I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation. Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a…
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The Eve of a Public Holiday Honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
Patti Smith, in her award winning book Just Kids, wrote on page 66 “That spring, only days before Palm Sunday, Martin Luther King was gunned down at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis.” I read that sentence, just now, and remembered that tomorrow will be Martin Luther King Day. The coincidence struck me as sufficient enough, that I should stop reading and instead write about why we honor this man so many years after his execution on April 4, 1968 ; he was only 39 years old when he died. There are many reasons why we honor this heroic African American. I will choose one instance as an example of his heroism and influence.…
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Historical Revolutions
Revolutions throughout history have been fought by those seeking freedom from the crushing hand of their despotic rulers. More recently there are the extraordinary pro-democracy rebellions in the Middle East, referred to as Arab Spring, where revolts against years of oppression are breaking out. One of the first and most drastic outcries of Arab Spring against the oppression in the Middle East was in 2010, when a Tunisia man chose to burn himself to death in protest of his ill treatment by the police. Historical Revolutions The American Revolution (1775-1783) The Haitian Revolution (1794-1804) The French Revolution (1789-1799) The Russian Revolution (1917) The 1956 Hungarian Revolution The Cuban Revolution (1956-1959) The…
