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THE MILLION MAN MARCH

By Richard Pugh

On October 16, 1995, nearly four hundred thousand African-American men gathered on the National Mall for the Million Man March. The crowd stretched across the heart of the Mall, covering fourteen blocks from the foot of the Capitol to the base of the Washington Monument.

Smithsonian Institution Photo

Participants advocated "unity, atonement and brotherhood" to draw attention to issues facing the minority community in the United States. Organized by the Nation of Islam and the NAACP, the rally was one of the largest demonstrations in Washington history, surpassing the 250,000 who gathered in 1963 for Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic "I Have a Dream" speech.

Speakers included Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rev. Al Sharpton, both former Presidential candidates, as well as Marion Barry and Kurt Schmoke, the mayors of Washington, D.C., and Baltimore at that time.

The march set goals for voter registration, volunteerism, and community activism. Leaders promoted a message of amity when the legacy of racial stereotyping and enmity was still in evidence in many parts of our nation.

Smithsonian Institution Photo

For further study ...

• "One Year Later, March Still Invigorates Some; Two-Thirds of African Americans Say Last Year's Gathering Has Lasting Effects, Survey Finds," The Washington Post, October 16, 1996.
• "Makes Me Wanna March; Why I'm Coming and What All of Us Have To Gain," The Washington Post, October 15, 1995
• "March Foes Assail Leader, Not Aims; Goal of Uniting Black Men Wins Wide Support, but Farrakhan Draws Fire," The Washington Post, October 14, 1995

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