Durham marks 60th anniversary of March on Washington

Hundreds gathered at a local church in Durham on Sunday to dedicate their service to commemorating the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington, which is credited with helping to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The sanctuary of St. Joseph AME Church was filled with the sounds of prayer, worship, singing, and clapping as people reflected on the message of a dream that lives on.

"Today is a time where we focus not just on commemoration and looking at what happened 60 years ago, and celebrating many of the advancements over the last 60 years," Reverend Dr. Jay Augustine said. "But today is also a day of continuation where people are continually mobilizing coming together to fight against the deliberate attempts to roll back many of those rights."

The day after joining thousands of people in the March on Washington in D.C., Augustine led his own march of sorts in Durham, reflecting on how the line between the past and present seemed to blur.

"Now there's no such thing as a dog whistle anymore," Augustine said. "There is a bullhorn that's out. There is a full frontal assault on democracy. There's a full frontal assault on communal engagement on diversity, equity and inclusion."

He says the same fight decades ago for fair wages, voter rights, fighting inequities, racial injustices and division continues.

"60 years later, we are still witnessing significant acts of violence toward our community." Church service guest speaker said. "As recent as yesterday, in Jacksonville."

On this year's anniversary, the racially motivated shooting of 3 black people in Florida weighs heavy on many, a grim reminder of the hate that remains.

"The narrative of white supremacy that manifests yesterday in Jacksonville is synonymous with the narrative that manifested last year in Buffalo, New York. It's synonymous with the same narrative that manifested in June of 2015 at an AME church in South Carolina," Augustine said. "We are stronger together than we are apart. The tapestry of America's diversity is something that should be celebrated, something that should not be feared."

As he preached, the community must continue to march on from the battlefields of 1963 to 2023.

Sixty years ago, on August 28, 1963, the centennial year of the Emancipation Proclamation, an estimated 250,000 people descended on Washington, D.C., for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.