The West End Rotary Club of Atlanta, the first Rotary in Atlanta to have African-American members, and the first to have woman, invited me to speak about the Center. Their meetings are held at historic Paschal's restaurant, which was a real treat as a few days before I spoke the same room was the site of a presidential candidate visit-- a good podium.
I took the chance to speak to the historical lessons that should be remembered and celebrated in the Center. I highlighted four key lessons we should remember and that can inspire us:
1) The Civil Rights Movement was a mass movement-- many unknown or long-forgotten people took heroic stands.
2) Atlanta as a community has a long tradition of reaching across racial, religious, and professional boundaries.
3) There was and remains an interconnectivity between the destiny of various groups-- as Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere". The leaders of the Civil Rights Movement realized this truth very early and continued to live this belief through their involvement in other struggles for freedom in the U.S. and internationally.
4) The most powerful faith practiced by those who demonstrated was an abiding belief in redemptive justice-- justice for everyone, not just for one group. Those in the Civil Rights Movement believed that segregationist and oppressed could both be released from the bonds of injustice.
The last point is the one that continues to amaze me. As I've talked with Civil Rights leaders, to a person they describe that the faith in saving both the people that hated them and themselves kept them going in the darkest hour. What a miracle-- someone is trying to hurt you or even kill you, and still an attempt is made to reach them spirtually. To me-- their faith inspires today.
Here is the link to the short (5min) Four Lessons Podcast
-- Here's the entire speech, it runs about 20 minutes-DS Rotary Entire Speech
There are so many stories and ideas to be brought into the Center-- I believe everyone can find a person or story that is deeply personal for them, no matter their age or background.
DS