Black men to gather in capital

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story originally appeared in the Oct. 10, 1995, edition of the Springfield News Sun

Black men from across America, including a contingent from the Springfield area, will take part in the One Million Man March in Washington, D.C. on Monday. Organizers expect the march to be the largest showing of black unity in the nation's capital since Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s ``I Have A Dream'' speech in 1963. The setting _ the 23-block area around the Washington Monument and Reflecting Pool _ will be the same. There were approximately 250,000 people in attendance in 1963. One million black men is the goal this time. Joining the gathering will be Springfield Mayor Dale Henry, members of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Muhammad Mosque No. 71, and other local organizations. They will leave for Washington by bus between 6 and 8 p.m. Sunday. They will be joining three other buses from Central State and Wilberforce universities, said Minister Arthur Smith of the Muhammad Mosque. Henry said he considers the march a historic event _ one which he has a responsibility to attend. ``I consider it to be my responsibility to heighten the awareness of other African American males to the need to be more unified in our attempts for social justice and equality,'' he said. Pastor Charles ``Dickie'' Robinson of Christ Community Fellowship Church said he thinks it's time for a show of unity among black men. Smith said the march, called by Minister Louis Farrakhan and the Rev. Benjamin Chavis Jr., is for black men to come together for a day of atonement and reconciliation. ``We must put demands on ourselves as black men to take on our responsibilities for our families and communities and to ask God for his forgiveness for the sins of black people,'' Smith said.. He said leaders also will be demanding that the government open the files on the murders of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. On the day of the march, black churches across the country will be asked to open their doors, not only for atonement, but for voter registration, Smith said. He said there are eight million unregistered black voters. Additionally, blacks are asked to stay home from work, keep their children home from school and to attend church to reconcile their differences, register to vote or watch the march on television.