Today marks the 51st anniversary of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. I remember this day last year: I saw very few Facebook posts and even fewer Instagram dedications. Many people only know about the black history we are taught in school. However, not all history makes the "books." I think it is important that we learn to search for that which is hidden or unrevealed to us and that we develop a complete view of the past as we use our findings to formulate a scope of who we are and who we ought to be.
Addie Mae Collins. Cynthia Wesley. Carole Robertson. Denise McNair. I call them by name. Names that ring louder than the Liberty Bell and resound with fortitude. Names that don't just deserve a headline on September 15th, but are recognized in every step I tread. These 4 little girls (3 of them were 14 and 1, 11) were killed in a church bombing on September 15, 1963. Although their lives ended in tragedy, they were catapults for change in legislation and progress in the Civil Rights Movement.
I have never lost a child, but I have lost friends and I know that death is a pain that cuts deep. Time never heals all wounds; we just find a way to make things easier and more bearable. On today, I ask that you all take a moment of silence and remembrance for these girls and sit in solidarity with the mothers, fathers, cousins, friends, families, and communities that lost 4 precious lives in their pursuit of freedom and equality.
To you 4 courageous, dreamy, and admirable girls: on this day we want you all to know that you are valued and that your lives were not taken in vain. From the pits of my heart I say, "Sorry that the words of Rev. Dr. King resonated through your ears, but were not witnessed during your life." I have a dream that one day 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 hear that although you 4 did not know what the true essence of equality felt like, the world did not always look black and white through your inquisitive eyes because you knew the power of love and forgiveness. Alabama has made some strides and those very words you sat and listened to on August 28th, they have manifested in even the smallest of ways.
Addie, Cynthia, Carole, Denise, we give a sacrificial offering, which is the dedication of our life's work and the backdrop of our purpose, to you today. We will no longer speak of equality and justice, we will seek it- if not for our namesake, for yours. We honor you with the utterances of our mouths and the legacies we leave as we make our mark. On this day we are reminded of the urgency of now! Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
Below I have included one of my spoken word pieces related to this historic event (just click on the picture below and it should play). Please take the moment to listen and also share with your friends. I have also included a few links for those who are interested in reading more.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0915.html
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/06/13/us/1963-birmingham-church-bombing-fast-facts/
http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/m_r/randall/birmingham.htm
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