Reflections on the 2013 March On Washington

 
Editors note: Andi Sosin and Joel Sosinsky are members of The Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition
On Saturday, August 23, 2013, we, along with over 200,000 people of all races, gathered around the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC to commemorate the 50th anniversary of 1963’s “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom,” at which Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his vision of racial equality and a just society in his “I Have A Dream” speech. In the tradition of the activism that followed the Triangle fire of 1911, which resulted in legislation protecting worker safety and unionization, the 1963 March on Washington was instrumental in passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This year, unions, churches and community organizations again made it possible to travel to Washington DC from all over the U.S., because despite the progress made towards a more just society since 1963, clearly our goals have not yet been attained.
We carried the shirtwaist kites that have become symbolic of the Remember the Triangle Fire Coalition as we walked along with thousands of people toward the Lincoln Memorial. All morning people just kept coming—soon the whole area around the Reflecting Pool was consumed by the crowd, just as it had been 50 years before. Home-made signs decried the injustice of Trayvon Martin’s murder and the unfairness of Stand Your Ground laws, racial profiling, and Stop & Frisk. We distributed copies of the People’s Tribune to people who walked near us, and we were gratified by their interest.
We were impressed by civility of people coming together in solidarity. While there were passionate conversations and loud expressions of support during the speeches, people in the crowd were cordial to one another; we didn’t witness any altercations, pushing or shoving, or even any nasty words exchanged. Even the people standing on the long lines that formed for the porta-potties were agreeable; when a mother with her young son asked to cut in line, they were accommodated by the waiting adults with no problem.
Simultaneously, we felt a sense of history, a sense of anticipation, a sense of peace and a sense of hope. From the podium, speakers exhorted the crowd to pledge to vote in every election, and to protest unfair incursions on the right to vote. We heard complaints about reactionary and regressive government policies—the gutting of the Voting Rights Act, restrictive immigration policies, and reactionary Supreme Court rulings along with other corporate and ALEC-inspired laws that have cut off economic opportunities and limited freedom for so many, especially people of color and immigrants.
This March on Washington to commemorate the 1963 March is but one instance in a long and unending struggle. Protests following the Triangle fire and all the mass demonstrations before it and since show the power of activism. On our bus ride home, we all expressed a sense of hope that this March on Washington will result in greater and swifter progress toward a more moral and decent society. For more information, visit http://rememberthetrianglefire.org.