Transcripts For CSPAN3 The Civil War 20160730 : comparemela.

She said to me, on that day, i want you to see what you can be when you grow up. I will never forget that day. I thought about that day while we stood here in this field. Now i said to bakari a few ago, this day has even more significance to me. At the time that we came here, i was also serving as chairman of the board of directors of the shaw boys club in charleston, South Carolina. Many of you may not recognize shaw. Me robert gould Robert Gould Shaw was the quiet kernel colonel who commanded the 54th regiment. And to see here today reenactors of the 54th regiment participate in this program and reflect back on that day, this day has significant meaning to me in the way that you would not believe. [applause] heres what i want to say about today. I dont know if i ever thought, while standing on these grounds 50 years ago, that i would be back here 50 years later, as your representative to the United States congress. But i am. And its because of what was launched that day. Remember watching was here. Remember why king was here. He came here to help launch a political movement. Virgil demurring demary was running for the state senate. And four others, people of color three others, running to break the color barrier. I did not know on that day i would come back to kingstree two years later as the executive director of the South Carolina commission for farm workers with an office down on thorne avenue with virgil demaray is one of my bosses. That election did not go well. In 1966. L demaray trial that Matthew Parry undertook on behalf of the naacp did not go well. He lost that trial. But he gained the hearts and minds of people all over the state, all over this country, and we are here today because of those sacrifices made back then. It is our job to make sure that those sacrifices were not made in vain. Bakari has mentioned to use some of our challenges of today. Let me leave you with this one. , sumter,urg county lee, lancaster, fordleston, rochester, beau all of these counties, after reconstruction, were represented in the United States congress by people of color. I want to say that again. Between 1866 and 1897, people of color represented South Carolina in the United States congress. In that period of time, the lieutenant governor, two lieutenant governors of South Carolina were people of color. The state treasurer, the secretary of state, 2 3 of the General Assembly were people of color. But something changed. It started in 1895. And i want to leave you with this. When we had a Constitutional Convention in South Carolina in 1866, robert smalls, an africanamerican, was in that convention. He proposed the resolution that resulted in free Public Schools for everybody in South Carolina. He, to me, was the most consequential public official from South Carolina who ever lived. No people may have other choices, and that is they are their right. Robert smalls is mine. He spent 10 years in the South Carolina General Assembly. He spent 10 years in the United States congress. He developed great wealth. When he died in 1915, he had been 20 years away from affecting the Constitutional Convention in 1895. The Constitutional Convention that took all of the rights of africanamericans away. And he died a brokenhearted person, because people lost focus. They began to take for granted all of those gains that were made. We must not take those gains that have been made for granted. Bakari has told you. Today, we live under stand your ground laws. That is nothing more than a license to go out and execute people without any threat of any kind of consequences. We stand today looking at voter id laws that are nothing more than efforts to suppress the votes of people of color. People hidere behind Second Amendment rights as if there are not any limits. There are limits on the first amendment. All of us have free speech, but there are limits on what that free speech can be. All of us have the right to the Second Amendment, but there are limits on Second Amendment rights. Just because you have the right to own a gun doesnt mean that you should not be subjected to background checks to see whether or not you qualify to have the gun. Its one thing to have rights. Its Something Else to qualify. So we must be vigilant. Thomas jefferson i dont know if he ever said it. In fact, ive done the research, and i cannot find that he ever said this. But he has given credit for having said that the rights of privilege, the price of privilege, of freedom is eternal vigilance. I do not know if he said it or not. But i know this. If we are going to maintain the freedoms that were hardfought on that day, on these grounds, in 1966, if we are going to maintain those rights, those freedoms, those positions we hold, we must be vigilant. We must register, and we must vote, and we must get out and work for those elected officials , and once they get elected, hold them accountable. Thank you. And god speed. [applause] rep. Clyburn am i supposed to present this . Im so sorry. Someone asked me, how long was kings speech that day . Not a very long speech. Not a very long speech. Now, he was rushing through the speech because the weather was bad. Everybody thought the storm was coming back. So, we have for you the university of South Carolina months ago wheres obert . Robert donaldson is doing great work uncovering these kinds of things. I said to him and talking about that, in South Carolina, july 8, 1867. I was present at connor hall in charleston. He said, i think we got that speech. And ill show him this in philadelphia, pennsylvania. And it is what i wanted to do. I hope he would do the same thing here today. Lets watch that great speech that Martin Luther king gave on these grounds on that day 50 years ago today. [video clip] [video clip] [no audio] mr. King i come to ask you to go all out, get every negro in this county registered to vote. [applause] each of you assembled here today decided that you are going to see that 10 other people are registered before he last day, 14th, i believe. Just see what a power you can be. Then after getting people registered, that is another, even greater responsibility. And that is to go out to vote in the primary. [applause] the state of South Carolina during the days of reconstruction, sent many negroes to the state legislature. The state of carolina not only sent them to the legislature, negroes to the congress of the United States. The last negro to leave the congress of the United States was from the state of South Carolina. In his farewell address, the one thing that he said, that even though this is a period that ends, we will come again. Right here from this county and all over the state of South Carolina, once more we will be able to send to the statehouse. Once more we have the opportunity to send to the congress of the United States qualified, dedicated lacked black men and women. [applause] let us on that glade day in glad day in june march on. March on bag lot boxes. This is the way we are going to straighten up the south and the ation. T us march on ballot boxes until somehow we will be able to develop that day. Men will have food and material necessities for their bodies, freedom and dignity for their spirits, education and culture for their minds. Et us march on ballot boxes so men and women will never agin wa again walk the streets let us march on ballot boxes until the empty stomachs of mississippi, alabama, georgia, louisiana and South Carolina are filled. Let us march on ballot boxes. [applause] until the idle industries of appalachia are revitalized, let us march on ballot boxes, until brotherhood is more than a meaningless word at the end of a prayer but the first order of business on every legislature, let us march on ballot boxes. [applause] let us march on ballot boxes until every valley shall be exulted, every mountain and hill made low, until the rough places are made smooth and the crooked places made straight, and the glory of the lord shall be revealed and all shall see it together. [applause] let us march on ballot boxes until we are able to send to the statehouses of the south men who will do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with their god. Let us march on ballot boxes. [applause] one day, mississippi, which has an affinity for the bottom, will be mississippi which has ffinity for the top. Alabama will be the heart of democracy. One day, South Carolina will be a better state. On day, georgia will be a better state. Why is this true . Because mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the lord. Glory. [applause] and all over the south and nation we can sing, glory hallelujah, glory hallelujah, our god is marching on. And so i say, walk together, children. Dont you get weary. [applause] theres a great meeting in the Promised Land. [applause] wow. It was pouring cats and dogs that day. The sun is hot today. But the atmosphere is still the same, filled with electricity from that stage how many of you all were looking for yourselves in the video . I saw you. I saw you. Thank you for being there then. Thank you for being here today. Lets give dr. King a round of applause. [applause] and we thank him so much for considering king street, the small town of king street, worthy of his time when he was saying indicted to the white when he was being invited to the white house and all these important places, he did not think we were too small and we were worthy of his attention, that really should make us feel very special. Now i want to ask to come to the stage mr. Michael allen and mr. Billy jenkinson for the unveiling of the historical marker. As they come, i want to tell you about these two gentlemen. Michael is a native of king street and a good friend. Yes. I first met michael when i moved back to charleston in 2001. He is one of the National Park services most valued historians and we feel that way about him in South Carolina. Michael is also, was very instrumental in getting more information out about the gulla and geechee culture. His public career as a cooperative Education Student for the National Park service in 1980 is how he started. He served as park ranger is now the Community Partnership specialist for the National Park Service Southeast regional office. He played a major role in the National Park Service Study this suitibility study that established Educational Centers to increase the interpretation and preservation of the Gulla Geechee culture. His motto is understand the present and move toward the future you must know and accept your past. How fitting for todays ceremony. R. Jinkinson is the scene your partner of a law firm here in kings tree. He has been practicing law for more than four decades much he is a native of kings tree and many call him mr. Billy here in town. He is a graduate of the citadel and emeritus member of the board of visitors. As a cadet he was responsible for ensuring that the military colleges first africanamerican cadet was treated fairly and the same as all other cadets. He made it his mission to see that Charles Foster was treated no better and no worse than any other cadet. One of his favorite recollections is the thanks he received from the commandant for helping cadet foster to succeed. He is a board member of the Williamsburg County Historical Society and also he serves as the cochairman for the africanamerican historical alliance. Among many other distinctions. Ladies and gentlemen, mr. Michael allen and mr. Billy jenkinson. [applause] good afternoon. It is a great privilege that i stand before you here as a native son, and one that was here 50 years ago. I want to share something about the importance about what we are about to do right now. History tells us that the state Highway Marker Program was begun in 1936 and in an effort to highlight and denote and recognize important landmarks, buildings, sites and locations across the state of South Carolina. This program today is managed by the South Carolina department of archives and history. 50 years ago when many of us gathered on this sacred space as we are doing today there were no highway markers specifically dedicated to africanAmerican History in any of the 46 counties of the state of South Carolina. Ladies and gentlemen, i can report to you that there are approximately 265 markers enoting the life, legacy and history and contributions of africanamericans and they can be found in every county in the state of South Carolina. In fact, the most recent update that i received from the state department of archives and history indicates that there are approximately today 1,500 markers across the state of South Carolina and each of the counties. For us at home today there are 22 historic markers here in Williamsburg County. That number, at the present time there are four markers that are dedicated to africanAmerican History and culture. He steven a. Swale house erected in 1998. The mount zion a. M. E. Church erected by the church and congregation in 2003. He mccollum murray house erected in 2007. And the Cooper Academy Methodist Church erected by Cooper Academy and bethesda Methodist Church History Committee in 2009. And in a few moments the march on ballot boxes thomas and alum ssociation and the citizens of Williamsburg County. As i was preparing to participate and put my remarks together a reporter asked mike why are you all doing this today and what is so significant about putting a historic marker at the place that dr. King stood and spoke 50 years ago. I quickly at that point began to think of an answer and immediately this answer came forward. In the book joshua, the scripture tells us that before the children of israel prepared it travel into the Promised Land they were asked to take out 12 smooth stones. These 12 smooth stones were left as a memorial. Oday we are here to uncover 12 smooth stones at this site and moving forward no one should ever ask why this was done. Moving forward, no one should ever ask the significance of doing this because of days of old and days to come we will know that on this day at this hour 50 years ago dr. King spoke from this very same sacred ground and i would encourage every school child in Williamsburg County, every teacher and every parent in Williamsburg County to take an opportunity to bring your kids to see that marker. Because that marker is a smooth stone of the history of the legacy of the greatness and importance of Williamsburg County. Thank you. It is an honor to be on stage with you today and have worked on this project together. When mrs. Mcgill made a few introductory remarks about me i thought that sounds more like an obituary. Than an introduction. I had to look to make sure i was really here. When this want was originally conceived we felt it was very important to erect a permanent marker at this location so that all would know in the years to come of the significant event that occurred here on march 8, 1966, when dr. King spoke in kings tree. As she stated the Unveiling Party consists of congressman clyburn. State senator and Caesar Mcknight and the mayor and supervisor Stanley Paisley who is accompanied by most Williamsburg County. Thomas High School Alumni and Committee Members mcfadden and Cassandra Williams rush. We felt it imperative for those involved represent the past, present and the future so it is fitting to have congressman clyburn who is present here 50 years ago on may 8, 1966 to do the unveili