Reflections on the 1993 March on Washington As part of the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the March on Washington on April 25, 1993, the Task Force joined with Story Corps to share real-life stories about LGBT people as we approached today’s anniversary. You’ll find a series of related posts on our blog from the past week.
And, today we have our own guest post from Deborah Monsieur Bell, was the National Organizer of the 1993 March and fondly referred to by volunteers as The Supreme, Mega Grand Diva of the Whole Blessed Universe:
Anniversaries are an occasion for celebration, remembrance and reflection. On April 25, 1993, “The March on Washington for Lesbian, Gay and Bi Equal Rights and Liberation” (93 MOW) took place. It was a significant day for the 700,000 folks present. Park police placed the number at 300,000. One of the performers that day, Deidre McCalla quipped, “That is because women and people of color are invisible.” Later analysis indicated the larger crowd estimate. And for me, as one of the main organizers, I was at the heart of it so I have my own perspective.
As an activist in Houston, Texas, I had been involved for many years in the peace and justice movement with a strong feminist base in the National Organization for Women (NOW). I had been a co-chair for two years of Houston Pride, and had attended previous national marches. Little did I realize that attending the Task Force’s 1991 Creating Change conference would change my life as dramatically as it did. Many people describe Creating Change as “coming home” and it felt that way for me as well.
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