Virtually every adult American knows that Mahalia Jackson sang at the 1963 March on Washington and that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech there on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
But who can name the genius of organizing the massive event, without whom there would not have been a march? A man who had worked with union leader A. Philip Randolph back in 1941 to organize a similar march of 100,000 to go to Washington and demand that African Americans be employed in the defense industries — and who called it off when President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued an executive order commanding that “Negroes” be hired in defense plants. That man was Bayard Rustin, often called “the forgotten hero” of the civil rights movement.
Present both online and in person, nearly 70 people turned out Monday for a special screening at the Presbyterian Center of the brief film “1963-Still: Same Shot,” which was filmed by and featured youth ages 6-18. The film was made this summer through a partnership among the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); its Louisville neighbor, the Roots 101 African American Museum; Media Pros Productions; Upcoming Storytellers; and the Louisville Central Community Center.
There are varieties of gifts, but the same Holy Spirit gives them. There are varieties of services, but the same Jesus Christ who is followed in service. There are varieties of activities, but the same God activates all of them in everyone. (1 Corinthians 12:4-6, paraphrased)
Individuals who want to gain a greater understanding of the civil rights movement and how it continues to be impactful can sign up for a Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) travel study seminar that will include visits to three southern states next spring.
The Presbyterian Center in Louisville, Kentucky, will host a screening of the film “1963-Still: Same Shot” from 3 p.m. through 4 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, Nov. 20.
After spending a month discussing Sarah Augustine’s book, “The Land is not Empty: Following Jesus in Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery,” an online group was treated earlier this month to more than an hour with the author herself.
In a Wednesday conversation with the Rev. Dr. Lee Hinson-Hasty, Senior Director for Theological Education Funds Development with the Presbyterian Foundation, the Rev. Jermaine Ross-Allam shared his wisdom and thoughtfulness over the work he is doing on behalf of the Presbyterian Mission Agency as the director for the Center for the Repair of Historical Harms.
In March 2011, when a pastor called a long-serving community member right before his death, only God knew that conversation would be the beginning of a journey and a living example of restorative justice.
October 12, 1792, was the first observance in the United States of America of what we now know as “Columbus Day.” The Columbian Order of New York, better known as Tammany Hall, held a commemoration of the 300th anniversary of his historic arrival in the “New World.”
The Rev. Shanea D. Leonard, director of the Presbyterian Mission Agency’s Racial Equity & Women’s Intercultural Ministries (RE&WIM), has been doing the work of dismantling oppressive systems for more than two decades.
In their work they found that this requires white people teaching and facilitating white people. The hard conversations and unfiltered truths that come from fully embodying this work is often a lighter burden when white people are doing this self-work together without the emotional labor of their Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) siblings.
Leonard’s discovery led to the formation of the White Ally Network — a working title — which met last week for the first time in Charlotte, North Carolina.
