50 years later, thousands retrace March on Washington

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WASHINGTON — Tens of thousands gathered Saturday on the nation's "front yard," the National Mall near the Lincoln Memorial, yearning for a bit of the transcendent sense of racial unity heralded on this spot by Martin Luther King 50 years ago in his "I Have a Dream" speech.

From steps where King spoke, orators spoke of the unfinished business of achieving a broader sense of equality in America, while also offering hope that much has and will change.

"Those who marched on Washington in 1963 have taken a long and difficult road from Montgomery to Greensboro, from Birmingham to Tuscaloosa," U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, the first African American to hold that post, told the crowd Saturday.

"As we gather today 50 years later, their march is now our march. And it must go on. And our focus has broadened to include the cause of women, of Latinos, of Asian Americans, of lesbians, of gays, of people with disabilities. And of countless others across this great country who still yearn for equality," Holder said. "I know that in the 21st century we will see an America that is more perfect and more fair."

The message of generations seeking common cause across the decades since 1963 was a recurring theme Saturday.

"Me and my generation cannot now afford to sit back consuming all of our blessings, getting dumb, fat and happy thinking we have achieved our freedoms," said Cory Booker, the 44-year-old mayor of Newark, N.J., and Democratic candidate for Senate.

Throughout the day, speakers raised myriad issues including voting rights, widening economic disparity and how race in America that, despite so many advances, remains unfinished business to this day.

Keying on the fabled rhythm of King's "I have a dream" refrain, orators reveled in the repeating phrase, punctuating remarks with clauses such as: "it's movement time," "keep dreaming," "redeem the dream," and "we still have work to do,"

Aging veterans of the original March on Washington gathered with younger generations, amassing a crowd that in contrast was more female, more Hispanic, more diverse by sexual orientation and far more tech-savvy than in 1963.

Sixteen-year-old Qion Nicholson's only knowledge of the original march was what he learned in school. Arriving by bus from Asbury Park, N.J., he said he now feels part of that history going forward.

"I'm grateful to be living in today's era," says Nicholson, of Sayreville. "The (original) march meant so much for our country."

Zuletzt geändert am: Aug 24 2013 um 4:43 PM

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