The Millions More Movement was launched by a broad coalition of
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
leaders to mark the commemoration of the 10th Anniversary of the
Million Man March. A mass march on Washington, DC, was held on October 15, 2005, to galvanize public support for the movement's goals. The march was open to men, women, and children and focused on creating lasting relationships between participating individuals, faith-based organizations, and community institutions. The movement only rallied a few thousand protesters and was seen as a disappointment.
Issues and goals
Ten key issues identified by the movement organizers are:
:Unity, Spiritual Values, Education, Economic Development, Political Power, Reparations, Prison Industrial Complex, Health, Artistic/Cultural Development, Peace
In ''An Open Letter on the Millions More Movement'',
Louis Farrakhan
Louis Farrakhan (; born Louis Eugene Walcott; May 11, 1933) is an American religious leader who heads the Nation of Islam (NOI), a Black nationalism, black nationalist organization. Farrakhan is notable for his leadership of the 1995 Million M ...
stated in part,
For the first time in our history, those of us of different ideologies, philosophies, methodologies, denominations, sects, and religions, political and fraternal affiliations have come together to create the Millions More Movement. Each of us, who have agreed to work together for the benefit of the whole of our people, have said from our particular platforms, based on our beliefs and understanding or the lack thereof, words that have offended members of our own people and others; and our ideology, philosophy, religion, and pronouncements may have hurt the ears and sentiments of others outside of our community. Therefore, this has kept us working inside of our own circles with those who think as we think or believe as we believe. As a result, some of us would never appear on the same stage with one another, for fear of being hurt by association with those with whom we have serious disagreements.
The Millions More Movement is challenging all of us to rise above the things that have kept us divided in the past, by focusing us on the agenda of the Millions More Movement to see how all of us, with all of our varied differences, can come together and direct our energy, not at each other, but at the condition of the reality of the suffering of our people, that we might use all of our skills, gifts and talents to create a better world for ourselves, our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Leaders/co-convenors
* Minister
Louis Farrakhan
Louis Farrakhan (; born Louis Eugene Walcott; May 11, 1933) is an American religious leader who heads the Nation of Islam (NOI), a Black nationalism, black nationalist organization. Farrakhan is notable for his leadership of the 1995 Million M ...
, National Representative of Elijah Muhammad and the
Nation of Islam
The Nation of Islam (NOI) is a religious organization founded in the United States by Wallace Fard Muhammad in 1930. A centralized and hierarchical organization, the NOI is committed to black nationalism and focuses its attention on the Afr ...
* Reverend Willie Wilson, National Executive Director
* Leonard Muhammad, National Deputy Director
National co-conveners (partial list)
*
Mrs. Coretta Scott King,
Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change
*
Dr. Benjamin Chavis Muhammad,
Hip Hop Summit Action Network
*
Rev. Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner,
Skinner Leadership Institute
*
Dr. Dorothy Height,
National Council of Negro Women
*
Dr. Conrad Worrill,
National Black United Front
*
Attorney Malik Zulu Shabazz,
New Black Panther Party
*
Charles Steele,
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) is an African Americans, African-American civil rights organization based in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. SCLC is closely associated with its first president, Martin Luther King Jr., ...
*
Reverend Jesse Jackson,
Rainbow/PUSH Coalition
*
Phile Chionesu,
Millions Women Movement
*
Ambassador Asiel Ben Israel,
Hebrew Israelite Nation
*
Marc Morial,
National Urban League
*
Councilman Marion Barry and
Cora Masters-Barry
*
Dr. Julianne Malveaux, author and columnist
*
Reverend Al Sharpton,
National Action Network
*
Dr. Maulana Karenga,
The US Organization
*
Rt. Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie,
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a Methodist denomination based in the United States. It adheres to Wesleyan theology, Wesleyan–Arminian theology and has a connexionalism, connexional polity. It ...
*
Jim Brown
James Nathaniel Brown (February 17, 1936 – May 18, 2023) was an American professional American football, football player, civil rights activist, and actor. He played as a Fullback (gridiron football), fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the ...
,
Amer-I-Can
*
Susan L. Taylor, ''
Essence
Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...
'' magazine
*
Ramona Edelin,
Black Leadership Forum
*
Fredrica Bey, Women in Support of the
Million Man March
*
Rev. Michael Jenkins,
Family Federation for World Peace and Unification
*
Rev. John Hunter,
First A.M.E. Church
*
Tom Joyner
*
Tavis Smiley
Tavis Smiley (; born September 13, 1964) is an American talk show host and author. Smiley was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, and grew up in Bunker Hill, Indiana. After attending Indiana University Bloomington, Indiana University, he worked durin ...
*
Erykah Badu
Erica Abi Wright (born February 26, 1971), known professionally as Erykah Badu, is an American singer and songwriter. Influenced by rhythm and blues, R&B, Soul music, soul, and hip hop, Badu rose to prominence in the late 1990s when her debut al ...
*
Dr. Leonard Jeffries
* Bob Law
*
Danny Bakewell
*
Dr. Baba Hannibal Afrik
*
Dr. Joseph Lowery
*
Dr. Ray Winbush
*
Dr. Faye Williams
*
Dr. Susan Newman
*
Rev. Floyd Flake
*
Pastor T.L. Barrett
*
Rev. Dr. Barbara King-Outley
*
Rev. Dr. Maxine Walker
*
Rev. Walter Fauntroy
*
Rev. Al Sampson
*
Bishop Alvin Richardson
*
Bishop Augustus Stallings
*
Dennis Courland Hayer
*
Kwesi Mfume
*
Dr. Molefi Kete Asante
*
Ron Daniels
*
Ron Walters
*
Dr. Julian Bond
*
Ambassador Andrew Young
*
Ambassador Carole Moseley-Braun
*
Rep. Eleanor Holmes-Norton (D.C.)
Endorsers
*
AME Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a Methodist denomination based in the United States. It adheres to Wesleyan–Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. It cooperates with other Methodist ...
*
AME Zion Church
*
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
*
Congressional Black Caucus
*
International Brotherhood of Teamsters Union
*
National Association of Black Social Workers
*
National Bar Association
The National Bar Association (NBA) was founded in 1925 and is the nation's oldest and largest national network of predominantly African Americans, African-American attorneys and judges. It represents the interests of approximately 67,000 lawyers, ...
*
National Baptist Convention of America
*
National Baptist Convention
*
National Black Student Government Association
*
National Coalition for Reparations for Blacks in America
*
National Conference of Black Mayors
*
National Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs
*
National Medical Association
The National Medical Association (NMA) is the largest and oldest organization representing African Americans, African American physicians and their patients in the United States. As a 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) national professional and sc ...
*
National Pan-Hellenic Council
The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) is a coalition, collaborative umbrella council composed of historically African American fraternities and sororities, commonly called the Divine Nine, and also referred to as Black Greek Letter Organi ...
*
Universal Negro Improvement Association
Abbreviated calendar of events
*Friday, October 14, National Day of Absence
*Saturday, October 15, Official start of events at 10 a.m., some pre-event activities as early as 6 a.m.
*Sunday, October 16, Mass Unity Interfaith, Interdenominational Service Sunday evening
See also
*
List of protest marches on Washington, D.C.
References
External links
CNN Report on the MarchMillions More Movement websiteHouston Local Organizing CommitteeSt. Louis Local Organizing CommitteeGreater Kansas City Chapter Local Organizing CommitteeWashington, D.C. Local Organizing Committee{dead link, date=January 2018 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes
2005 protests
2005 in Washington, D.C.
October 2005 in the United States
Louis Farrakhan
Post–civil rights era in African-American history
Nation of Islam
Protest marches in Washington, D.C.