Ferguson activist Cathy “Mama Cat” Daniels is heading to the March on Washington in Washington D.C. on Aug. 28, and she’s bringing a bit of Black Girl Magic with her.
“I think about the historic election we just had and these black women who went through a lot,” Daniels said. “They had pounds of dirt just thrown at them. They stood up, just like our ancestors. They stood up against so much, I’m proud to say.”
Daniels is referring to the historic Democratic primary election on Aug. 4. Ferguson activist and nurse Cori Bush beat 10-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay; she is now set to become Missouri’s first African American congresswoman. Voters also re-elected progressive incumbents St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner and St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones. None of them face a Republican challenger in November who has garnered a significant number of primary votes.
But Daniels is also ready to be inspired by marching among thousands of others in the Get Your Knees Off Our Necks Commitment March. It is scheduled for the 57th anniversary of the historic March on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. Announced by Rev. Al Sharpton during George Floyd’s memorial in Minneapolis, the march is co-convened by Martin Luther King III. Daniels said several other activists from St. Louis will also make the journey.
“This March on Washington shows our commitment to fighting for the oppressed, the marginalized, the neglected people of this country,” Sharpton said in a statement. “We are tired of the mistreatment and the violence that we, as Black Americans, have been subjected to for hundreds of years. Like those who marched before us, we are standing up and telling the police, telling lawmakers, telling the people and systems that have kept us down for years, ‘Get your knee off our necks.’”
The National Action Network, founded in 1991 by Sharpton to promote a “modern civil rights agenda” in the spirit of Dr. King, is organizing the events. Protesters and activists will gather at Lincoln Circle at 7 a.m. Friday, Aug. 28, to hear the day’s programming before marching at 1 p.m. to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.
“We are in the midst of the largest civil and human rights movement in history,” said Martin Luther King III. “Now is the time, and this is the generation that can realize the dream my father spoke of 57 years ago. Black Americans are still bearing the same hardships my father worked to eradicate, and the only way we can hope to see the future he dreamt of is by continuing the peaceful and radical work he began years ago.”
Speakers will include the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner and others to address the loss of Black lives at the hands of police. They will advocate for police accountability, criminal justice reform, voter protection and more.
“Unfortunately, it’s now 57 years later and King’s dream has not been fulfilled,” Daniels said. “Any time anyone gets up to speak truth to power, I’m excited to hear you talk. I’m excited to be around people who are willing to lay it on the line and stand up for justice. I just want to be in the numbers. I just want to be there. Maybe I can bring something back to help uplift the family here.”
To register for the march, visit the National Action Network website.
