It’s been over 50 years since Martin Luther King Jr gave his famous, “I Have A Dream”
speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
An unprecedented number of people journeyed to hear his words.
But the March on Washington didn’t have a Facebook page, a White House petition or
a YouTube call to action.
Activists relied on different means of communication to make their voices heard.
Seeker Stories takes a look at the ways technology has influenced civil rights movements from
MLK to Black Lives Matter.
So, Dr. Carson, this is the historic March on Washington of which you were a part; can
we see you in here?
Dr. Carson: I was probably right about there.
ABOUT 250-THOUSAND PEOPLE MARCHED ON WASHINGTON IN AUGUST 1963, INCLUDING CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST
CLAYBORNE CARSON.
IT WAS ONE OF MANY PROTESTS AGAINST SEGREGATION AND OTHER FORMS OF LEGAL DISCRIMINATION DURING
THAT ERA.
I was 19-years-old, I didn’t tell my parents I was going.
for me, this was an event that was long overdue.
There was that sense of urgency?
Yeah, definitely.
And that’s what King spoke to is the urgency of now.
There comes a time when people get frustrated at the slow pace of change
TODAY, MORE THAN 50 YEARS LATER, THERE SEEMS TO BE A NEW SENSE OF URGENCY.
IMAGES AND VIDEOS OF
MIKE BROWN, ERIC GARNER, SANDRA BLAND, AND FREDDIE GRAY HAVE SENT SHOCKWAVES THROUGH
COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY
AND INSPIRED A NEW GENERATION OF ACTIVISTS DEMANDING JUSTICE.
One of the moments that really hit home for me was when Trayvon Martin was killed and
George Zimmerman was acquitted.
I saw myself in Trayvon Martin.
I was the kid who every single day would walk home, stop at 7-Eleven and buy some candy
and a sweet tea
The reality that at any moment somebody could’ve come up, attacked and killed me and the justice
system wouldn’t have done anything really to protect me, it hit home.
25 YEAR OLD SAM SINYANGWE WORKS WITH A TEAM CALLED “WE THE PROTESTERS”
TO ORGANIZE ACTIVISTS, AND TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA TO AFFECT CHANGE.
Sam, you tweeted last year--there were protests in over 100 cities, that hasn’t happened
since 1965.
It’s a new civil rights movement folks
What would you say is different about today’s civil rights movement
One big key difference is // how technology has been an instrumental tool in bringing
folks together at a pace that really was unheard of in the ‘60s.
// The year since Mike Brown has been killed has seen over three times as many protests
happening as 1965.
And so this is a scale that really isn’t heard of in American history
Can you talk to me about organizing back in the 1960s
how did people organize an effective Grass Roots Movement?
Mainly face-to-face.
And the main, I guess, electronics we used were telephones.
In fact, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee,
developed what they call the WATS line and all it really was, was a way of making inexpensive
long distance telephone calls.
A “WATS” - OR, WIDE AREA TELEPHONE SERVICE LINE, ALLOWED CIVIL RIGHTS WORKERS TO REPORT
THREATS OR VIOLENCE HAPPENING ON THE GROUND.
TYPED REPORTS OF THOSE CALLS WOULD BE DELIVERED TO MOVEMENT LEADERS AND THE PRESS.
and that was a major transformation in the movement
social movements always use the technology of their day to the maximum because social
movements are all about communicating to people.
that’s still happening today.
The only thing that’s different is that it’s much faster.
SAM IS ALSO USING PUBLIC DATA TO TRACK AND MAP INSTANCES OF POLICE VIOLENCE ACROSS THE
COUNTRY.
We’ve mapped 336 black people killed by police in 2015; 313 who were killed by police
in 2014.
// Because of the internet, we were able to // gather this data in a way that actually
ended up being much more comprehensive than the federal government has ever been able
to do.
What do you think Dr. King would think about the Black Lives Matter movement, for example?
I think he would be very appreciative of the fact whenever young people are concerned about
things other than themselves, that’s a positive sign.
I think he would’ve thrived in this kind of an age.
He would’ve been very, very open to using social media.
He would’ve had millions of followers on Twitter.
Are you hopeful?
Absolutely.
We’ve seen over 1,000 protests take place, we’ve seen hundreds of thousands of people
engaged.
We’ve seen 24 states sign legislation to improve police accountability.
We’ve seen the President // take executive action in order to address police brutality.
// And so all of that work has happened in the space of a little over a year.
this is a moment of tremendous opportunity, but it is not something that is preordained,
it is something that // could all be taken away and we could go backwards and so we have
to keep fighting.
If you want to see more in depth content like this, check out Seeker Stories.
They’ll take you around the world sharing the stories of extraordinary people, cutlures,
and innovations.
In this episode, Dr. Tiffany Anderson has dedicated her career to improving the lives
of children.
Find out how she turned around a failing school district by watching this video right here.
With grants partnerships and some creativity, Dr. Anderson balanced the budget, launched
a college prep program and brought back arts education.
She also began to address issues that stemmed far beyond academics.
I learned that food was the greatest issue sowe decided we would open a food pantry.
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