Washington
Johnson: Here’s what I remember from the 1963 March on Washington
I am sitting in my office on August 28 remembering the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom that took place on this date in 1963.
I have so many wonderful memories of that day. I see the faces of so many people of every race, ethnicity, gender and religion. I’ve been part of hundreds of marches in my lifetime, but the March on Washington is still that march, that event, that experience that continues to remind me of what America can be if we all work together.
There are some things about that march which are not well-known. First, I was a skinny, handsome teenager fresh out of high school when I attended the march. I helped to organize a group from my hometown of Plaquemine, La., and surrounding areas. We had more than four charter buses headed from the bayous of Louisiana to the capital.
We were happy and yet hesitant at the same time. Interstate travel with integrated buses was against the law in the South. We knew many of us would not make it to the march because of being arrested by state police in Louisiana, Mississippi or Georgia. We had already raised bail money before we left, and we needed it!
One of the speakers to be featured that day, Dr. James Farmer, who was head of the Congress of Racial Equality, was not able to speak at the march because he was in jail in my hometown. He was there with us as we protested the stifling voting laws in our parish. The protests led to my home church being tear-gassed by state troopers while we were having a meeting. They busted through the doors and windows riding horses throughout the sanctuary, beating us with cattle prods and billy clubs. The local police arrested Farmer and would not release him.
Another interesting item is that one of the biggest supporters of the march was Charlton Heston. He was close friends of Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier and Sammy Davis Jr. He was standing up front with most of the Hollywood celebrities like Robert Culp and Burt Lancaster. The same man who was the lead in the movie The Ten Commandments and a staunch financial supporter of civil rights later in life became the head of the National Rifle Association.
Also, we seem to forget this was not the first March on Washington. In May 1957, a march called Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom had more than 25,000 demonstrators. The march was to encourage the federal government to continue working to implement Brown vs. Board of Education. The figurehead of the 1957 and 1963 marches was A. Philip Randolph, a larger-than-life luminary of the Civil Rights Movement.
I still laugh when I think about how the “I Have a Dream” speech came about. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. had already started on a different speech when singer Mahalia Jackson, who was sitting in the background and not known for whispering, shouted, “Martin, tell them about your dream! Tell them about your dream, Martin!”
I guess she must have shouted it one too many times, because King closed his binder and delivered one of the greatest speeches of all time.
You see, Jackson had heard the speech before. Two months before the March on Washington, King stood before a large crowd in Detroit and delivered a sermon titled, “Making the American Dream a reality.” Jackson was present for that speech and shouted for Martin to deliver it again. When King closed his binder that day in Washington, D.C., and looked across the vast audience, Rev. C.T. Vivian could be heard shouting, “We’re about to go to church!”
America, the dream is still alive. I have seen great changes in our country. Do we still have more to do? Yes! But we have come a mighty, mighty long way.
So, as my mentor and one of the greatest 20th-century philosophers said, and I say with him, “I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream.”
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Washington
Washington Capitals 2025-26 W Magazine Now Available | Washington Capitals
Arlington, Va. – W Magazine, a lifestyle publication produced by the Washington Capitals, is now available for purchase online at www.washcaps.com/wmagazine and at the Team Store at Capital One Arena and at the Team Store at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. The fan-favorite magazine, which features content surrounding every Capitals player along with hundreds of personal, never-before-seen family photos, is available for $8 plus shipping. In addition, season ticket members will receive a complimentary issue, with copies for season ticket members available at the Planholder Hub on the 100-level concourse during Capitals home games.
The cover story, written by Capitals senior writer Mike Vogel, goes in-depth with forward Pierre-Luc Dubois. Vogel speaks with Dubois, his teammates and family members for an extensive feature on the phone call that changed Dubois’ life and shaped his future with the Capitals franchise. Spanning more than 200 pages, W offers exclusive photography of Capitals players and their families, along with lifestyle content and interviews with every member of the 2025-26 roster. Highlights include:
- John Carlson on fishing in Maryland with his sons
- Brandon Duhaime on spearfishing and his related YouTube channel
- Ryan Leonard on moving to D.C. and living with the Dubois family
- Charlie Lindgren on his first offseason as a dad
- Alex Ovechkin on celebrating back home after becoming the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer
- Logan Thompson on his love of dogs
- Trevor van Riemsdyk on pop-a-shot and pickleball
The magazine also features an in-depth look at the Capital One Arena transformation project, including exclusive photos, insights into future phases and Capitals player reactions to the new Capitals locker room complex. A special interview with Monumental Sports Network’s Joe Beninati and Craig Laughlin reflects on the historic 50th anniversary season, while a day-in-the-life piece with Caps Radio’s John Walton and Katie Florio brings readers behind-the-scenes of a home game radio broadcast.
Additional features include a look at a regular day for former Capitals service dog in training Biscuit – now a facility dog at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center – and a photographic recap of Alex Ovechkin’s historic 2024-25 season. A new “Beyond the Boards” section spotlights community stories, while the fan-favorite “Short Shifts” section returns with Capitals players sharing thoughts on topics such as the best singer on the team, funniest teammate, personal goals beyond hockey, what everyone should try at least once, their ideal entrance theme song and more.
The magazine also profiles members of the Capitals Black Hockey Committee and introduces fans to the team driving the organization’s youth hockey initiatives.
W design services were provided by Matt Ryan. Player photography was provided by Greg Powers with assistance from Damon Banks. The cover featuring Pierre-Luc Dubois was photographed on the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., with the assistance of captains and crew from City Cruises. Players were photographed for the publication at Origin in Arlington, Va.
Washington
Ginger’s Journey: Walking from Washington State to Washington, D.C.
Imagine setting out, on foot, for a journey not knowing how long it would take. Now imagine doing it with two animals as traveling partners from Washington State to Washington, D.C.
“Now I’ve started this leg of the journey in Morton, Washington where I was spiritually requested to go to Washington, D.C. and sing the song ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon on the Capitol steps,” says Jacob Holiday.
Jacob Holiday is on his way across America so he can sing a song he says signifies peace in the hopes, he says, of ending violence everywhere.
“I want so much peace. Cops would no longer carry firearms. We’re going to send the militaries of every country, I don’t care which one you’re talking about but every country, home to go to sleep. I don’t care what they do. But I want all this violence, everything, all this violence to stop.”
He has two wagons and his traveling companions are a dog and a goat. Holiday started in Washington State in July and he’s not worried about how long his hike across America will take.
His multi-state trek has seen him encounter a lot along the way, including a run-in with a bear.
He carries food for himself and his dog and his goat on carts that he says weigh a couple hundred pounds. Besides necessities, Holiday has one thing he’d greatly appreciate receive being able to buy as he continues his mission.
Holiday says he knows his mission isn’t an easy one, and he uses it as a metaphor for life as a whole.
We caught up with Holiday in the early part of November on a 70-degree day in Cambridge, Nebraska then spoke to him again a few days later in the rain as he headed east on Highways 6 and 34, so no telling how far he’s gotten now.
After we met with Holiday, we did notify the local sheriff to perform a welfare check, but we’re told Holiday wanted to continue his walk with his Capitol Steps goal still ahead of him. We also offered him food for himself and his animals, which he declined saying he had enough food on his carts.
Washington
Washington state flooding damage profound but unclear, governor warns
The extent of the damage in Washington state is profound but unclear after more than a week of heavy rains and record flooding, according to the state’s governor, Bob Ferguson.
A barrage of storms from weather systems stretching across the Pacific has dumped close to 2ft (0.6 metres) of rain in parts of the state, swelling rivers far beyond their banks and prompting more than 600 rescues across 10 counties.
More high water, mudslides and power outages were in the forecast. Elevated rivers and flood risk could persist until at least late this month, according to the National Weather Service. Wind and flood watches and warnings are expected in much of the north-west for the next couple of days as storms bring rain, heavy mountain snow and high winds.
As of Tuesday, authorities had recorded one death – of a man who drove past warning signs into a flooded area – but key highways were buried or washed out, entire communities had been inundated, and saturated levees had given way. It could be months before State Route 2, which connects cities in western Washington with the Stevens Pass ski area and the faux Bavarian tourist town of Leavenworth across the mountains, can be reopened, Ferguson said.
“We’re in for the long haul,” Ferguson said at a news conference. “If you get an evacuation order, for God’s sakes, follow it.”
It won’t be until after waters recede and landslide risk subsides that crews will be able to fully assess the damage, he said. The state and some counties are making several million dollars available to help people pay for hotels, groceries and other necessities, pending more extensive federal assistance that Ferguson and Washington’s congressional delegation expect to see approved.
According to the governor’s office, first responders had conducted at least 629 rescues and 572 assisted evacuations. As many as 100,000 people had been under evacuation orders at times, many of them in the flood plain of the Skagit River north of Seattle.
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