Million man march

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Million-man march, in the background the Washington Monument

The Million Man March ( English Million Man March ) was a mass rally of African-American men in on 16 October 1995 Washington, DC took place. Its aim was to appeal to black people in the United States for unity and their moral values. The rally had at least 500,000, according to another source 600,000 to a million participants. The co-organizing Nation of Islam indicates the number of participants as "over a million".

organizer

The model for the gathering was the 1963 March on Washington for Work and Freedom , which also took place on the National Mall . Organized the demonstration of about 200 civil rights organizations , including from some local groups of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP, dt. National Organization for the Promotion of colored people ) and the National African American Leadership Summit (dt. National African American leadership ). Important organizers were Benjamin Chavis Muhammad and the leader of the Nation of Islam , Louis Farrakhan . The rally had been planned since 1990 and was also referred to by the organizers as the " holy day of atonement and reconciliation " and known by this name.

Attendees

The participants were mostly African American men from across the United States . With exceptions such as Rosa Parks , who was one of the speakers, whites and women were not invited, which also led to criticism within the civil rights movement. Louis Farrakhan , the US-American leader of the religious-political organization Nation of Islam , justified this procedure with the fact that some women appeared as speakers, women had been involved in the preparation of the march and the black women of America, unlike the men, “ Repentance and a new beginning ”would not have needed. According to statistical surveys of the time, black men were underrepresented in professional life compared to black women, but they were often criminal, unemployed or suicidal. Black women who attended the rally anyway were treated with respect.

From Farrakhan's point of view, whites were not among the addressees of the appeal, because, contrary to the objective of the March on Washington of 1963, he was striving for an America made up of a white and a black nation, which should exist on an equal footing but separately.

Contrary to the fears of Washington citizens, the rally was peaceful and without the consumption of alcohol or other drugs . Participants included musicians MC Hammer , Ice-T and Isaac Hayes . No agreement could be reached afterwards about the actual number of demonstrators; Estimates were at least 450,000, but much higher numbers were also given.

Speaker

Over sixty speakers spoke at the rally, including Jesse Jackson , Rosa Parks, and Congressman Kweisi Mfume . Music by gospel choirs and drum groups was placed between the speeches. The writer Maya Angelou , who had already read in the same place when Bill Clinton was inaugurated in 1993, recited verses and Stevie Wonder was among the artists. Washington, DC Mayor Marion Barry appeared and said the idea of ​​the march was a divine inspiration.

The speech by Louis Farrakhan at the end of the rally was seen in retrospect as a central event of the event. It lasted two and a half hours. Farrakhan was protected by bulletproof glass and accompanied by uniformed bodyguards.

His speech had both political and religious aspects and thus and through the use of rhetorical means corresponded to his previous, successful speech and preaching style. Farrakhan called for the reconciliation of blacks with one another and placed it in a religious context. He referred to the Old , New Testament and the Koran and brought aspects of numerology , concerning the number nineteen , the role of Pharaoh Akhenaten and the basics of Masonry in his speech. It included a pledge by the participants to values ​​of nonviolence among one another and to empowering blacks in the United States.

Because of anti-Semitic remarks, Farrakhan was criticized, however, it rejected. The aspect of unification and reconciliation among blacks has been masked by accusations that the America of 1995, like that of Abraham Lincoln's time, was under the "insanity" of white supremacy, which was destructive to the country.

Public perception and reactions

The million-man march took place less than two weeks after the acquittal of the black football star OJ Simpson , who had been accused of the murder of two whites in a worldwide criminal case. The acquittal by a predominantly black jury was judged very differently in America; the then President Bill Clinton warned of a "rift in the heart of America". This fear played into the public perception of the million-man march.

The political message of the event was also viewed controversially within the civil rights movement itself. Democratic Congressman John Lewis stayed away from the rally that did not meet his vision of integration. Bill Clinton praised the participants, but on the other hand warned of the "wickedness" of Louis Farrakhan, whom he accused of "sowing discord" between blacks and whites.

Aftermath

On the tenth anniversary of the march, thousands of blacks again demonstrated in the same place and protested, again under the leadership of Louis Farrakhan, against the government policies of George W. Bush . The criticism was directed against the Iraq war and the government's response to the catastrophe caused by Hurricane Katrina . Former presidential candidate Jesse Jackson was one of the speakers again.

Similar "marches"

literature

  • Kerstin Probiesch: Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam. In: Africana Marburgensia. Special issue 18, Marburg 2000, ISSN  0174-5603
  • Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan . Verlag JHW Dietz Successor, Bonn 1996, ISBN 3-8012-0234-8 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f Spiegel Special 2/1996: A tear in the heart. The new trend towards racial segregation. Retrieved June 5, 2011 .
  2. ^ A b Associated Press in The Epoch Times, October 16, 2005: Black Organizations Mobilize Against Bush. Archived from the original on July 30, 2012 ; Retrieved June 5, 2011 .
  3. ↑ About The Million Man March. A Glimpse of Heaven. Retrieved January 22, 2017 .
  4. ↑ a b Men's March for Black Rights . In: Berliner Zeitung , October 17, 1995
  5. ^ The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition 2008. Retrieved June 7, 2011 (English).
  6. ↑ Kerstin Probiesch: Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam . P. 40
  7. ^ The New York Times, October 14, 1995: Thousands in New York Prepare for Black Men's March. Retrieved June 7, 2011 .
  8. ↑ Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan. P. 16 f.
  9. ↑ Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan. P. 15
  10. ^ The New York Times, October 21, 1995: Federal Parks Chief Calls 'Million Man' Count Low. Retrieved June 7, 2011 .
  11. ↑ Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan. P. 11
  12. ↑ Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan. P. 12, 15
  13. ↑ Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan. P. 15
  14. ↑ a b Jet. The weekly source of African American political and entertainment news . tape 88 , 1995, pp. 4-11 . (English) Online: limited preview in Google Book Search
  15. ↑ a b c A million men march for Louis Farrakhan . In: Die Welt , October 18, 1995
  16. ↑ Kerstin Probiesch: Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam . Pp. 39-44
  17. ↑ Hans Hielscher: "God is angry, America": the rise of the black leader Louis Farrakhan. P. 19 f.
  18. ↑ Spiegel Special 1/1998: Islam - made in USA. Retrieved June 5, 2011 .
  19. ^ Spiegel Online on October 16, 2005: Riots during anti-Nazi demonstration. Retrieved June 7, 2011 .