Lift Every Voice and Vote: Join the civil rights march and rally on March 5 in Frankfort

KFTC members are encouraged to participate in a major civil rights gathering on March 5 in Frankfort. This event marks the 50th anniversary of a historic civil rights march in 1964 attended by more than 10,000 people including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Georgia Powers, and Jackie Robinson. That event helped build support for the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 and resulted in passage of the Kentucky Civil Rights Act two years later.

The commemoration event is being organized by the Allied Organizations for Civil Rights, of which KFTC is one of many members. This year the theme is “Lift every voice and vote!” Event planners will focus on democratic participation and access to voting as a key human rights issue of our time. Many speakers will urge passage of HB 70, a proposed constitutional amendment restoring voting rights to former felons in Kentucky.

Schedule for the day

• Marchers should gather at 9:30 a.m. (EST) at the corner of Second Street and Capital Avenue. (Some school groups will begin their march from the History Center, but all others should gather at this location. People who prefer not to march may wait in seats provided near the Capitol steps for the march to come to you!). Look for KFTC banners in the crowd to connect with other KFTC members.

• The march to the Capitol Steps will begin around 10 a.m.

• A rally will follow on the Capitol Steps and last until about 12:15 p.m.

• In the case of bad weather, the event will take place in the Frankfort Convention Center at 405 Mero Street, a few blocks away from the Capitol.

Immediately following the march, there will be several optional activities, including:

• Lobby! Before you arrive, call your Senator and Representative to schedule an appointment to meet with them between 12:30 p.m. and 1:45 p.m. on March 5. You can reach any lawmaker’s office by calling 502-564-8100 to schedule these appointments. Whether or not you are able to confirm a meeting, be sure to drop by their offices on the 2^nd, 3^rd or 4^th floor of the Capitol Annex to leave a written message after the rally. Ask them to “support the House Version of the Voting Rights Amendment, HB 70!”

• Learn! There will be a forum on African Americans and the Future of Kentucky Politics at 2 p.m. at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History in downtown Frankfort. Panelists will be Bardstown Mayor Bill Sheckles, Perryville Mayor Anne Sleet, Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilman Chris Ford, and Owensboro City Commissioner Pamela Smith-Wright, in addition to several guest panelists. The moderator will be Renee Shaw, producer and host of KET’s minority affairs program “Connections with Renee Shaw.”

• Visit. Participants are invited to visit the Governors’ mansion, which is celebrating its 100^th year anniversary. The Governor’s mansion will also open its new educational wing.

Buses, Carpools and Parking!

Here are places where people are gathering for buses and carpools to the rally. For more information and additional locations, contact Mary Ann Taylor, Kentucky Commission on Human Rights, at 502-782-9728.

• Lexington: Shiloh Baptist Church at 7:30 a.m.

• Louisville: free buses leaving from the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage and Southeast Christian Church Lot B at 7:30 a.m.

• Covington: the Covington Human Rights Commission/City Hall

• Frankfort: meet at 2nd Street and Capital Avenue at 9:30 a.m.

• Owensboro: Owensboro Human Rights Commission

• Bowling Green: A free bus will leave from Big Lots parking lot at 5 a.m. For information and seat reservations call: 270-782-7900

• Berea: Meet in the Artisan Center parking lot at 7:45 a.m. to join a carpool, or email [email protected] for more information.

• Paducah, Franklin, and Russellville are among the other locations where people will gather. Call for details. More locations likely will be added.

Cars should park on a side street near the Capitol or in the Capitol parking garage. Buses should park in the K-Mart parking lot and be escorted to the start of the march to drop off passengers. The following numbers are available for more information about parking and good drop-off locations: 502-682-0556, 502-682-0431, 502-595-4024.

Links

• Blog post about the march on our website
• Official press release about the march
• Facebook event