During the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, Yohuru Williams, founding director of the Racial Justice Initiative at the University of St. Thomas, spoke about the topic to several news outlets around the country. He is also the author of a new book on the topic, More Than A Dream: The Radical March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
From AARP:
The March on Washington propelled King into the national spotlight as a gifted leader and orator. It also set the stage for many of his protégés, including (Rev. Jesse) Jackson, says historian Yohuru Williams, the founding director of the Racial Justice Initiative at the University of St. Thomas, who co-authored with Michael Long the upcoming book, More Than a Dream: The Radical March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.
“Some of the core issues that we see evidenced in the work of the Rev. Jesse Jackson … were articulated at the March on Washington in 1963,” says Williams. …
From MPR:
“When we think about Dr. King’s legacy, beyond the march by 1968 and the Poor People’s Campaign, they’re expanding those themes of economic justice to include poor people across the board. But if we think about segregation and racial inequality in America, there’s always been this economic component to it. So this was a march for both jobs and freedom, for economic justice and for relief against the type of racial injustice in housing, education, access to places of public accommodation, and police brutality, which was rampant in 1963. … We still have a long way to go with those things King talked about in 1963.”
From KARE 11:
“People kind of reduce the march to Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech. They miss that this was a march for jobs and freedom. They were talking about economic justice; they were talking about fair housing; they were talking about education. And importantly, if you go back and look at the images and the placards that the demonstrators brought with them to D.C., a lot of them said, ‘End police brutality now,’” explained Dr. Yohuru Williams, a professor of history and founding director of the Racial Justice Initiative at the University of St. Thomas.
Williams is the co-author of More Than a Dream: The Radical March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The book – geared toward middle-grade readers, ages 10-14 – comes out Tuesday, Aug. 29.
“I think living here in the Twin Cities, and the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, and witnessing this national pushback against the teaching of African American history, my co-author Michael Long and I said we have to start thinking about writing for younger generations,” Williams said. “We have to start thinking about recasting this history in a way that we don’t go for the typical American progress narrative, but we tell stories and we tell our history in a way that helps people connect the dots.”
Besides King, there were nine other speakers for the March on Washington. Williams encourages people to revisit the speeches and learn more about the leaders behind the historic event, including those with ties to Minnesota.
