Voices from the March on Washington

Gr 5 Up—In this collection of 70 short poems, Lewis and Lyon introduce the 1963 March on Washington through the perspectives of those who took part. The participants, young and old, come from all over (a group of students from Spelman College, an Iowan farm girl, an unemployed college graduate, and a six-year-old riding atop her father's shoulders), and they express a variety of feelings: wide-eyed optimism, frustration, cynicism, and apprehension. The first poem, "Reflection," a concrete poem in the shape of the National Mall's reflecting pool, sets the stage by noting that many of the 250,000 marchers are drawn by "unfulfilled promises," while in "Crossing the Potomac," a marcher affirms, "We'll turn the other cheek/like the Good Lord said, but we have come/for our rights and we won't turn back." The book contains plenty of detail and references to actual people, including the organizers (A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin), the speakers, and singers Marian Anderson, Mahalia Jackson, and Joan Baez. Many Southern marchers, accustomed to Jim Crow laws, drink alongside whites at public water fountains for the first time. The poems keep the action moving forward, as the marchers arrive, assemble, and are inspired by the significance of the peaceful demonstration. Supplemental matter helps track fictional voices and real individuals. This well-crafted introduction to the Civil Rights era deserves a wide audience, as these poems, with their plain-spoken, honest emotions, offer insight into the past, and inspiration to continue the struggle.—Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA