Life in these United States

My Grandmother Played In the Reflecting Pool After MLK’s “I Have A Dream” Speech

There was a time when Americans waded in the Lincoln Reflecting Pool freely

I watched with sadness as it was reported that our president put fencing with razor wire around the reflecting pool. There was a time when the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was a source of joy for people visiting Washington, DC. United States citizens literally frolicked in the pool.

Once Upon a Time

One reason I have such a strong sense of justice is because of my maternal grandmother. She passed away many years ago. I was her first and favorite grandchild. When I returned from the misadventure of running away with an evil man in my teens, she was the one who welcomed me back and helped me find my way. Grandma pointed out that I was the first granddaughter and the first daughter. I had an obligation to do well for the family so that everyone could do well.

My younger siblings were already attempting to duplicate my top 10 poor decisions. I know it was shocking to me, but she was right. I stepped out of my delusion that I would be a superstar model and went to work climbing the ladder of success using my brain rather than my looks.

Grandmother inspired me. She was not some famous civil rights activist. As an everyday person of color, she felt compelled to support the movement. She traveled to Washington, D.C., for The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom with members of her church on an airless bus. They stopped so people could get off the bus and cool off. Remember, this was a time before “public accommodation” was the law of the land.

Packed Bus, Blazing Heat, Unbreakable Spirits

If you owned a business open to the public, you could put a sign in your window stating which color, racial group, ethnic group, or religion you would refuse service to. That was that. Businesses were within their rights to discriminate against anyone based on their personal preferences.

The church provided its members with hand fans to help them keep cool. They had an ice chest that was filled with large plastic bags of water. The women each made and brought food to share. They sang protest songs and slavery hymns while they rode.

The seating on the bus accommodated two people. Each seat had three people in it. Each person traveling contributed a minimum of $10. My grandmother was exceedingly proud of the fact that she put in $15.

Grandmother said two white freedom fighters rode on their bus for two reasons. The first was that they wanted to go to the March. The second was that the mere presence of white people changed the way the police interacted with Black people. If the police stopped the bus, they would send their white people out to deal with them and pretend the white person was in charge.

Never forget that this was the 1960s, where, in certain parts of America, a Black person’s word against a white person’s word had a foregone conclusion — the white person was right. No matter the facts or evidence, the white person was always right.

Road‑Weary but Resolute

“The August 28, 1963, March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom is a landmark of the civil rights movement and widely known for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. The marchers started at the Washington Monument and progressed along the National Mall to the Lincoln Memorial, where the main program was held. Observers called the size of the March “unprecedented.” Organizers anticipated between 100,000 and 150,000 marchers. On the day of the March, the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department reported that “by 3 p.m. an estimated 210,000 persons were at the rally,” excluding those who left early or arrived late. National and international press outlets widely reported the march, broadcasting significant television coverage for the time.“ https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R47655

My Grandmother traveled from Chicago to Washington, DC. They started at 10 pm and arrived the next morning. The entire bus freshened up and changed clothing at a home owned by another white ally. Grandmother said the coffee and biscuits they got from that couple for breakfast were the best. Sitting in the cool house, they were told how to behave at the rally.

The nation would be watching, expecting Negros to show out and show up, so don’t meet their expectations. Show them that what the racists fed them was not true. Everyone was wearing their Sunday best.

You were responsible for yourself and everyone else around you. Don’t let racists bait you into doing anything that would reflect badly on you, your family, your church, or your race. Help each other. Turn the other cheek, because if they could, police would seriously hurt or kill as many of them as they could.

A Ten‑Hour Ride to the Change Front Lines

Back then, I was a kid. I wish I had written the oral history my grandmother told us about The March on Washington. But I remembered this. Martin Luther King was one of the last people to speak, so everyone was hot by the afternoon.

After the march, she and her group first stepped into the reflecting pool to see what would happen. When nothing happened, the bravest ones waded into the pool, happy to have been part of fighting for the rights of those the nation treated as less than. Their actions sparked changes that improved the lives of every despised group in the United States of America.

Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Kitty Kelley and the Estate of Stanley Tretick

When I went to Washington, D.C., to view the cherry blossoms for one of my birthdays, I put my hands into the reflecting pool. I was struck by how beautiful it looked. No one stopped me or paid attention to what I was doing. The water was not crystal clear, but I don’t remember any algae either, but I wasn’t looking for any.

The Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument bookend the reflecting pool. I visited both and felt so proud of our nation. Minorities cannot change the will of the nation by themselves, but the good people of the majority race help them. My heart was full that day.

It makes me sad to know that, in our current environment and under our current leadership, the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool now has tall fences topped with barbed wire surrounding it. That people are being arrested for doing what I did years ago, merely touching the water.

The good news is that I sincerely believe we will survive this ridiculousness, but will we ever recapture that sense of innocence in our nation? We knew right from wrong and chose right most of the time. Our country elected a leader who recently publicly stated he was not concerned about the financial condition of the people of the nation who elected him.

Martin Luther King Jr. waved to supporters from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. AFP | Getty Images 1963

It is my hope that our American sense of right will prevail. With liberty and justice for all.

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