"This Train" (In honor of King Day)

[chicago]

On this anniversary of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth, I thought it would be well to listen again to the legendary production, “This Train”, remembering the journey to Washington D.C. made by so many for the historic civil rights march (August 1963) with inspiring interviews conducted by the great Studs Terkel.

brief highlights:

dlv1.matrix.msu.edu:8080/ramgen/terkel/a0/a1/terkel-a0a1i9-b.rm

Full program:

Part 1 (starts about 31:30 on the larger program):

chicagopublicradio.org/audio_library/ram/848/848-000221.ram

Part 2 (again, starts about 31:30 on the show ):

chicagopublicradio.org/audio_library/ram/848/848-000228.ram

Do spend the time to commemorate this holiday by hearing these wonderfully articulate voices of hope.

Here’s a bit about it, from an article (available in full at):

abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=News&id=506359

August 28, 2003 - Racial tensions flared that long, hot summer of 1963. Peaceful protests were met in many cases with violent repression. Thousands marched on Washington marking the culmination of the struggle for freedom and equality, jobs and justice for blacks. For many, the catalyst was the murder of Chicago teenager Emmit Till, murdered in Mississippi for just looking at a white woman. On the eighth anniversary of his death the nonviolent demonstration made history.

“I shall never forget that day. It lives in my memory,” said Timuel Black. Black, then 44 years old, lead the Chicago contingent traveling by train to Washington. King inspired the World War II veteran years earlier in Chicago during a fight against unfair labor practices.

Many traveled by bus, others carpooled, some walked hundreds of miles and one man even roller-skated to reach the mall in Washington. Black remembers the struggles that lead up to the march.

“With those vivid memories of the dogs and the fire hoses, we were able to garner the kind of enthusiasm and over a short amount of time we only had a month,” said Black.

Local personality Studs Terkel boarded that same train armed with his tape recorder. He captured the thoughts and emotions of the Chicagoans making the 25-hour train ride:

“It’s something alike a dream I’m on this train proud to be in this,” said one man.

“It means relatives after me will have a better life,” said one woman.

“The train is like movement train to freedom,” said one man.

“The voices of the people we don’t know, who had dreams, and here is that march,” said Studs Terkel. “I have dream that one day this nation will rise up,” said Rev. Martin Luther King.

“They first applauded then fell silent,” said Terkel. “When he was there wasn’t a dry eye in the whole place.”

“It was the first time that many of us were together and it was very impressive and felt like there was hope,” said Anna Langford.