On August 28 1963, over 200,000 people took part in The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The march was one of the largest political rallies for human rights in United States history, and called for civil and economic rights for African Americans. It was initiated by A. Philip Randolph, the president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, president of the Negro American Labor Council, and vice president of the AFL-CIO. At the end of the march Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial. It was a pivotal event in the history of the American civil rights movement.
This summer, on August 28, people from across the US and Canada will converge on Washington to commemorate the 50th anniversary of this historic occasion. Our company, MS Touring, is organizing a trip to Washington in collaboration with the Ontario Chapter of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. We will leave Toronto by motorcoach on the morning of Saturday August 24 and return in the evening on Thursday August 29. While in Washington, we will participate in the March, as well as other commemorative events. In addition, we will take a Black History Tour of Washington, visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture's exhibit "Changing America: The Emancipation Proclamation, 1863 and the March on Washington, 1963", and view the art exhibit by renowned African American artist Faith Ringgold “American People, Black Light:" at the national Museum of Women in the Arts.