March On Washington

March On Washington
Originally uploaded by ujima.

August 28, 1963
Don't remember where we boarded the bus after dawn. We
were a sleepy,excited group. Everyone just napped as
we headed to Washington. Later, we got off the bus at
a rest stop in Wilmington to buy snacks and use the
restroom. The owner's wife ran out to lock the
facilities but we outnumbered her.

When we reached Washington, organizers were very
nervous because the crowd was so small. But, true to
CPT, the crowd soon grew and grew. I remember much
singing, the wonderful speeches, the diverse crowd and
Louis Berry in his business suit, carring his lunch in
an attaché case.

I did walk up to take a look at MLKing when he began
to speak and was caught up in the rhythmic cadence of
his words.

It ended too soon. We drove in the darkness toward
home. people threw rocks and firecrackers at the buses
from the overpasses; but that just added to the energy
of the day. I'd been to many marches before and have
been in many since, but that one was the most
stirring.

(I'm in the picture bottom left, Sis bottom right.)