January 15, 2005

On a beautiful sunny Saturday, January 15, 2005, in Columbus, GA an estimated 10,000 awakened Black people marched from the Civic Center to the Government Center to hear rousing speeches and plans of action to rectify the brutal murder of another young Black man, Mr. Kenneth Walker. Two days prior, weather storms lashed this part of Georgia clearing the way for the human storm that showed up on the doorsteps of the Columbus, GA Government Center.

Mr. Walker was shot twice in the head as he was face down on the pavement under the boot of white cops on Interstate Highway 185 on the bloody night of December 10, 2003. A year later a Muscogee County Grand Jury failed to bring charges against the deputy sheriff who killed Mr. Walker, thus provoking the wrath and producing a wakeup call for the sleeping giant of Black people in America.

Cars and buses came from throughout Georgia and Alabama to show empathy for the Walker family and disgust for the criminal "injustice system" of Muscogee County. In attendance were Kenneth Walker’s wife, Cheryl, his daughter, Kayla, and his mother, Mrs. Emily Walker.

Event Coordinator, Sister Clarice Muhammad, hosted a distinguished panel of speakers from numerous organizations who invigorated and enlighten the protestors. Rev. Wayne D. Baker, President of the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of Columbus, listed five reasons for the march: 1. Demand a new Grand Jury, 2. Show that the Black community "shall not be moved", 3. Show that "We stand united on this issue", 4. Celebrate the birthday of the greatest civil rights leader ever, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King and 5. Start an "impact movement."

One of the few whites in attendance, Mr. John Cole Vodicka of the Prison/Jail Task Force admonished other whites by stating that the so-called war on drugs is merely the "racist application of the law" to incarcerate young Black men and women. He said that "white folk are in denial and they need to march toward recovery of their humanity."

Mr. Antonio Carter representing the National Action Network roused the crowd when he said that it was time to "shake up the plantation." He warned the enemies of Black folk that you "can not win a fight against God. God is gonna break the chains of injustice for Kenneth Walker."

Rev. Eligin, President of Concerned Black Clergy, said that "when we show up, the Lord will show out. All of us who are walking today are in the Walker Family…The same God who had us walking around Jericho, has us walking today…"

The Nation of Islam was represented by Min. Abdul Rahman Muhammad who wasted no time at getting to the root. "America is under divine judgment for her mistreatment of her once slaves, the so-called American Negro." He pointed out that everyone else who comes to America unites accept the American Negro. "You are afraid to unite" he said. "You are pussyfooting around with trying to join on to a wicked way of life of America." He warned however, "God is lashing America with storms, hurricanes after one another: Alex, Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne. Mother Nature ain’t got nothing to do with it. This is the hand of God whipping America." He admonished the crowd to "Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues."

Then he ended by saying "You shot our brother Kenneth Walker down in the street. You love to shoot, so why don’t you shoot the hurricanes, why don’t you shoot the snow, why don’t you shoot the earthquakes. Allah is bringing her down, because of her injustice to Black people."

Judge Greg Mathis, famous TV judge, was there and talking strong. He pointed out that Kenneth Walker was another victim of the "criminal industrial complex". He said that this system has "moved the jobs from where we live in the cities and rural communities and replaced jobs with guns and drugs…Then they set up prisons to make money off of those who they would not educate." This was the second visit of Judge Mathis to Columbus concerning the Kenneth Walker case. After his first visit a few weeks ago, Mr. Mathis pointed out that some right-wing radio talking head accused him of trying to incite violence. He said that someone called themselves "telling on me" and used his words out of context to try and get the TV network in his words "to shut me up". Judge Mathis recanted, "I am not your slave. I am not your boy. You will not shut me up. You’re not gonna punk me out" to a thunderous applause. He further said that he knows why they don’t want him to speak to the young Black men. He said, "I can show them how to move up from the streets to the suits." He ended by saying, "I have taken your best punch and I’m still standing. Come on with it, I’m not scared of you."

Rev. Joseph Lowery said that this was "the best birthday gift at this moment of history that we could give Dr. Martin Luther King." He added, "You can not fight terror in Iraq and practice terror in Columbus, Ga." He compared the failed search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq to the weapons of mass destruction in the poor communities of America due to a lack of health insurance and the "minimum wage". He also admonished the audience to consider drug addiction and sexual promiscuity as "weapons of mass self destruction."

The National President of the NAACP, Dennis Courtland Hays introduced a new NAACP initiative that would produce a coalition of national and local organizations to develop a "rapid response team" to step into future acts of racial oppression and excessive use of force by police and law enforcement agencies throughout the country. He called for each community to begin to document incidents of abuse and compile statistics on past cases of police brutality or systematic injustices by agents of the government. He added that these steps and organized measures must be taken to fight the "voracious appetite" of the system to kill Black people.

Rev. Jesse L. Jackson ended the afternoon by telling the crowd that "Columbus, you can’t have a one round fight. You have to have a fifteen round fight." He ended by saying, "Long live Kenneth Walker. Long live Martin Luther King."

From the spirit of the youth Bro. Michael Muhammad presented his soul stirring poem called "Forgotten Gold". In it he admonished the present generation not to forget the suffering and hopes of the ancestors. A sonnet reads:

"Horses carried my body far across this land stolen,

But to give admittance to that these days my people be laughing and rolling,

Forgetting about the struggle and the strain,

The tears and the pain."

Looking over the thousands of Black faces at the Kenneth Walker march and rally reminded us of the historic Million Man March ten years ago, where over a million Black men showed up on a Monday for a "Day of Atonement". Statistics show that many changed their lives to atone for past activities emulating the wicked practices of America. The question now is whether the process of atonement has brought the Black community back into favor with a God that will see their suffering and hear their prayers? If so, then who will pray the proper prayer?