UPDATE (1/20/2011):
Since this post went up, a YouTube video of brother Michael McPhearson's speech at the rally became available. Thanks to my friend Bondi for adding a link to this presentation. I've also added a link to the presentation from Deborah Jacobs, Executive Director of the NJ ACLU. It is below with the paragraph about her speech:
Newark City Council Member-at-Large Mildred Crump addresses MLK Birthday Rally
Organized by the People's Organization for Progress, the march was also endorsed by unions and workers organizations, Veterans for Peace Chapter-21, immigrant's rights activists, as well as many community residents. Sponsoring organizations also included the New Black Panther Party, NJ Peace Action, International Longshoremen's Association Local 1233 and many, many others.
Chants of "Bring the Troops Home, Now!", "Martin Luther King, Live Like Him…", "What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? NOW!!!", "Money for Schools!" rang out along Broad Street as the marchers urged Saturday shoppers to join their ranks. Many did.
Deborah Jacobs, Executive Director of the NJ American Civil Liberties Union
Deborah Jacobs spoke about the POP campaigns that the NJ ACLU has helped with, like eliminating onerous insurance requirements for street rallies (a $1 MILLION policy before POP member Mary Weaver could hold a memorial in front of East Orange City Hall, is one example), as well as the ACLU campaign challenging the Newark police and other Essex County law enforcement organizations' murderous "Community Outreach Policing" policies (see the video of her presentation HERE).
POP NJ State Vice Chair for External Affairs, Larry Adams introduces the history
of Dr. King's connections to the labor movement
The struggle for decent wages and dignity by Memphis sanitation workers in 1968 is all but forgotten in the Martin Luther King -- Dreamer sanitized version of the legacy of Dr. King. Larry Adams, longtime president of the postal workers' Mailhandlers Local 300, spoke eloquently about Marin Luther King, Jr.'s revolutionary relationship with working and all oppressed peoples.
"And what was Dr. King planning after Memphis? He wanted to bring 1 million people; Black people from the ghettoes, Latinos from the barrios, Native Peoples from the reservations, poor whites from Appalachia, bring 1 million
out-of-work low income people to DC for non-violent civil disobedience!" With these words, Larry Adams introduced the period of Dr. King's life that culminated in Memphis, Tennessee.
1963 March on Washington veteran Clif Arrington, Chairman of the Bergen County
Branch of POP, shares the perspective of his many years in struggle
and his memories of Dr. King
Three veterans of the 1963 March on Washington spoke at Saturday's rally. Nat William, Clif Arrington and Aminifu Williams all shared their impression of the early Dr. King, as well as the Civil Right movement of that era.
James Carey, Chair of POP's Union County Branch introduced Lutin Pierre. Mr. Pierre is the owner of an employment service that Home Depot has refused to work with since discovering that it is Haitian-owned.
Ras Baraka, Newark City Councilman representing the South Ward was the final speaker
To see additions photos, click here.
1 comment:
While Rah's report, "POP Honors Dr. King's Birthday: March for Peace, Jobs & Justice!" was an excellent reflection of this important march and rally, my friend and brother left out a truly exciting presentation that day. I'm referring to the brief speech by Michael McPhearson, POP member, veteran of Gulf War 1 and former executive director of Veterans for Peace.
Brother McPhearson succinctly exposed how the
popularly accepted mythology of dr. King's beliefs rips the heart out of the lessons of his life, while challenging other "accepted wisdom' about the US war against Iraq.
Michael maintains his own blog, The McPhearson Report. An audio recording of the speech is available HERE.
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