As part of our continuing coverage for black H
month, his week we celebrate the daughters of the
movement. Women following in their father's footsteps
as leaders, activists and changemakers helping to shape
a better community. Tonight we honor Elisabeth Omilami,
the daughter of civil rights leader Hosea Williams.
National correspondent Tammy Es is back with us,
showing us how the Atlanta native is creating the
legacy of her own sometimes, no matter how hard you
try, you can't shake your family legacy. Hey, how you
doing? Hey, for Elisabeth Williams Omilami, the
daughter of civil rights leaders, Jose Williams. She
tried other careers but ended up right back where she
started my father Hosea Williams. Many people will
remember him as being the one that walked with John
Lewis across the Edmund Pettis bridge that led to the
civil rights act and the voting rights act. He was
Martin Luther King's national field organizer. She had
Hollywood dreams and was well on her way until
something pulled at her calling her home. Now talked
away in an Atlanta neighborhood Elisabeth
continues her father's mission of caring for others and
speaking out for social injusti Is nine years old, I
went to jail for the first time for civil rights As a
child, I went to jail. That was the sort of terrifying
chaotic, traumatic childhood th I had the ordeal
would haunt her for life. She was locked up with dozens
of beaten and bloody protesters during a march with her
father, but it also led to her rising up to become a
powerful daughter of the movement. He invented the
night march, which was terrifyi march. But it was the
best way to get the adults out is in the evening and
they would usually get beat, especially in the south.
So his job was basically, he and his staff to be the
sacrificial lambs that were going to these towns and
face Bull Connor, face the state patrol, face the
police. We had a cross burned in our yard. I saw people
beat. I saw all of that between before I went away to,
to high school. It puts something in me in Atlanta, a
mural honors her father known for wearing blue jean
overalls. So people knew he was never too important to
approach. When you get too big to do the little things,
then you're just too little to do the big things. I
love that because sometimes we can get so holy with no
earthly good during her father' time in the army while
dressed in uniform, white men beat him up for drinking
out of a whites only water fountain. That incident l
Williams on his journey for civil rights for black
people. But there was another pivotal moment that
changed his life Jose Williams saw a homeless man
eating out of a trash can And the man said that he
hadn't eaten in three days and come to find out that he
had lost his job when Williams died in 2000 Omilami
grabbed the reins and dug in which included buying a
building so they could have a central location and
expanding services. We changed our name from Jose to
feed the hungry and homeless to Jose helps because we
do so much more than than feed people. Now. Some of
those services include rental assistance during covid
teaching nonprofit leaders how to get grants and
national and international reli to mention a few. Why
do we have this in America? Yeah, when I started
realizing that Children were hungry, when I started
seeing Children come to our office and look at a plum
and had never seen a plum before. We're asking what
this? The hope is to leave the organization and the
people who come in contact with it in a better position
is what leads me every day to try to make a better life
for others. Omilami says she's not ready to stop
helping, but she may be ready for a new chapter one
that includes telling her story and asking one
important question, what are you doing for others?
Tammy Estwick, Newsy Atlanta