On Saturday, August 28, union members and community members gathered at the Doctor Martin Luther King Statue on MLK Drive in Milwaukee for a march and commemoration of the 58-year anniversary of the March on Washington. The 1963 March on Washington drew hundreds of thousands of supporters to the Washington Mall and is where Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his famous “I Have A Dream Speech.” The 58-year commemoration of the March on Washington was organized by the Milwaukee chapter of the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI).
Decorah Gordon, Vice President of APRI- Milwaukee and member of IBEW Local 2150 explained, “we are out here today for two main reasons. One to make sure we protect our right to vote and protect our say in democracy, and to celebrate A. Philip Randolph who was instrumental in organizing the March on Washington. We carry on his legacy today with this march.”
Larry Hall, President of A. Philip Randolph Institute, Milwaukee Chapter and member of United Steelworkers union, welcomed attendees and provided a brief history of A. Philip Randolph and his contributions to the labor and civil rights movements. Lieutenant Mandela Barnes, Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale, Senator Lena Taylor, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, and Milwaukee Area Labor Council President Pam Fendt were speakers at the event.
“The journey towards justice and equal opportunity for every America remains unfinished,” said Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale. “And so, we march today. We march to bear witness that as citizens of our democracy, each and every one of us, no matter our zip code or where we were born, no matter our race or how much money we have, no matter which candidate we prefer, we have a say in who governs. That is our American birth right and that is the law.”
Fifty-eight years after the March on Washington, we stand together and call for the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the For the People Act to be passed by Congress and signed into law. These bills protect and expand voting rights, reduce the influence of money in politics, and ban partisan gerrymandering so the will of the people cannot be ignored.
Click here to view photos from the APRI Milwaukee 58-year commemoration of the March on Washington.
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