50th Anniversary of March on Washington

"Our goal was not to gain power.  It was to heal a torn-up community."

 

~ Diane Judith Nash, a civil rights leader

 

Marching for your human rights and dignity is healing.  It is an act of restoring faith in yourself and your community. 

Marching is also rewarding for the human spirit and good for the human soul.  Standing up for your rights confirms for you that you are not alone in your feelings; that others share your thoughts and emotions.

Peacefully marching, holding protest signs and delivering passionate speeches gives rise to feelings of respect for those who are declaring, "We will not take it any more."

 

When people feel the continued effects of economic and political oppression, eventually they will push back against those efforts, and that is what happened 50 years ago today when over 250,000 people, black and white, from civil rights, labor and religious groups marched to steps of the Lincoln Memorial in the nation's capital to end racism in America.

 

The highlight of The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was the "I Have A Dream" speech, a historic and inspirational speech delivered by American clergyman and civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His stirring and passionate remarks were a defining moment for the civil rights movement and will be remembered for all time.  

 

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Photo Courtesy of thesoundsofhistory.com

The March on Washington is credited with helping to pass two groundbreaking pieces of legislation: the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

 

Today in the nation's capital, President Barack Obama, will deliver remarks about the state of racial harmony America in the same place where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke.  Joining Obama will also be Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter who will also address the expected thousands of marchers who stand  and remain committed to continuing to realize the dream of a Black America that is economically and racially equal.

 

Let us pause and remember the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr:

 

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today."

Rosa Parks

When I read that the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a stamp commemorating civil right activist Rosa Parks, I said to myself, "It's about time."

 

Parks, who would have turned 100 this year, was riding a segregated and crowded bus home in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955 when a white man wanted her seat.  She refused to get up and give it to him and she was arrested for breaking the law.

 

A 381-day bus boycott began, lead by a young Baptist minister named Martin Luther King Jr.  Both Parks and King went on to capture the nation's attention for standing up and leading the national movement for civil rights.

 

Parks appealed her arrest taking it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court which then ruled that bus segregation was unconstitutional.

 

By quietly saying, "No," look what Parks achieved.  She is truly inspirational!  Through her simple action she inspired thousands of others to demand a better life for themselves and their children.

 

Sometimes we want change to happen immediately; just as soon as we are sick and tired of something.  But other times, change happens incrementally, through one person after another agreeing with each other, bonding together and making their voices heard.

 

Positive thoughts can be powerful.

 

What would you like to change in your life?

 

Mad Men

The season premiere of "Mad Men" airs tonight and I can hardly wait.  It is my favorite television show and I am very curious to see where creator Matthew Weiner takes the endlessly interesting characters who work at the New York City ad agency of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce.

Watching "Mad Men" is like opening up a time capsule and immersing yourself in all of the sophistication, controversy and change of the 1960's.

The writing is suberb and from the moment you step in to the offices of Sterling Cooper you know you are in for a great time of it.  People drink constantly during the day, smoke all the time, yet there is hardly any cursing.  There are no computers or cellphones but there are lots of face-to-face meetings (romantic and business) in hotel rooms.  No one has any tatoos or piercings but there are lots of sexy crisp white shirts on the men and beautiful form fitting dresses and suits on the women.  Everyone looks like they are pulled together even though they aren't.  And underneath all of this is the backstory of the 1960's -- civil rights, women's changing roles at home and in the workplace, the Vietnam War, drugs and the Space race with Russia.

I also like to watch "Mad Men" because my husband worked in various news rooms in New York City during the 1960's and I like to imagine what the city was like during that time.  I think it would be fair to say that it was a time of working hard and playing hard.  Watching Don Draper (played by the handsome Jon Hamm) and Roger Sterling (played by the witty John Slattery) is very similiar to watching two people play a game of chicken in terms of taking work and play to the limit.

So I'm going to start making the popcorn.  Check it out if you get a chance.  You won't regret it!