In 1963, as a young college student and budding reporter, Harvey Silverglate, a Cambridge-based civil-liberties and criminal-defense attorney, had the gut instinct to report on what resulted in one of the major events in U.S. history.
On August 28, 1963, Silverglate joined more than 200-thousand Americans to travel to Washington D.C for a political rally, called, “The March on Washington” for jobs and freedom.
Reporting On The March On Washington
Silverglate says something inside him told him to go to the march. He tells WGBH Morning Edition host Bob Seay, “I had a sense that the country was ready for something big to happen, by way of enforcement of the 14th Amendment, which guarantees equality under the law to all Americans. I also had the sense that this particular event was going to be an historical one…and I convinced my editor to let me go as a reporter and report on the event.”
At the time, Silverglate was working as a cub reporter for the Ridgewood ( N.J.) Herald-News. (See article here)In the published newspaper story from back then, Silverglate wrote, “At least 60 area residents yesterday witnessed the largest peaceful demonstration in the history of the nation’s capital.”
The event was a key moment in the civil rights moment and as Silverglate said, “galvanized a nation."The day culminated with the memorable and impromptu, “I Have a Dream” speech by Martin Luther King Jr., which became a spirited call for racial injustice and equality.
As the nation’s pauses to observe its annual commemoration of King, who would have turned 87 on his Birthday, January 15, Silverglate spoke with Seay about King’s legacy and the significance of the march.
Memories of The March
He says he was most impressed by how tightly organized the event was…calling it was a huge, sprawling demonstration. “What was most noticeable to me was that the who people who showed up were from all social classes and all political stripes…radical student groups, and very established groups such as the NAACP, and they were all acting in unison…. just an amazing event.”
He tells Seay, “there were fears violence could break out, and it was surprising to many observers that there wasn’t violence, because some of the marchers were treated quite badly by people who showed up as provocateurs and by people who lived in Washington. The group, he says, managed to not take the bait. The discipline he says was just amazing.”
Historical Significance of The March
It was a significant day in many aspects. In discussing Dr. King’s “I Have A Dream” speech, Silverglate says, “if you look at that speech very carefully, and take it phrase by phrase, you can see what he was getting at. He was getting at the notion of enforcement of provision of the 14th Amendment which guarantees all of us equality under the law. He says King emphasized equality, and wasn’t looking for special favors…but equality. Silverglate says it was an inspiring message.
The day changed the life of Silverglate, and the focus of his career. He who went on to law school and became a civil liberties lawyer, in addition to successful parallel writing career on the subject as a book author and columnist.
Lessons of The March On the Nation
As a nation, we continue to face many civil rights issues, most recently the black lives matters movement and numerous police involved shootings of unarmed black men. In analyzing how we have progressed or digressed as a nation, Silverglate says we still have far to go. “We’ve taken the proverbial two steps forward and one step back, although he says, “a cynic might say we’ve taken two steps back. But I think we’ve only taken one step back, we’re well ahead of where we were back in the 1960s… in terms of fighting for legal equality.”
Observance of King’s Birthday
Silverglate says the way the nation celebrates and honors King’s legacy is probably not what King himself would recommend. Silverglate says in his opinion, King would not have been in a favor of a day off, and would instead have liked children to attend school and learn history. He says he works on Martin Luther King day in tribute to him.
To Listen to the extended interview with Harvey Silverglate and WGBH host Bob Seay, click on the audio file above.
