I had a wonderful time meeting people, attending the Marching Forward By Looking Back conference, marching through the streets of Washington at the 50th Anniversary March on Washington, listening to President Obama and many others speak in front of the Lincoln Memorial at the Let Freedom Ring Commemoration, visiting monuments and Smithsonian museums, and hanging out in Washington DC.

The conference, hosted by Howard University, was attended by well over 150 people from all over the US. I got to meet several veterans of the first march who shared their memories and experiences of fifty years ago.

Students from Alabama State University did a great job moderating the panel discussions and acting as hosts for the conference. I made friends with fellow writer and Alabama State University student, Anika S. Taylor and I sat in on a panel discussion about a Rochester, New York, summer program modeled on the Freedom Schools set up in Mississippi during the summer of 1964.

I met a group of seventh grade media broadcast students from Eliot Hine Middle School in Washington DC who were the official news organization for the conference. The young journalists broadcasted their report on Eliot Hine Radio, LIVE 365.

Geo Cooper, pianist and composer, played and sang civil rights freedom songs. He is the founder of the Ella Sheppard School of Music in Chicago, IL, which offers music classes to children ages 2-14.

Early Wednesday morning, August 28, conference attendees and many others met on the steps of Georgetown University Law Center for a ceremony honoring elders who marched for justice, fifty years ago. Alabama State University students gave sashes to veteran marchers and escorted them to the head of the line where they led the 50^th anniversary march.

We marched together through the streets of Washington DC, singing and chanting and making friends. I saw lots of kids at the march, some holding protest signs that they had made. It rained on us a little bit, but I was thankful for the cloud cover that held back the hot sun.

The march was peaceful and joy-filled, just like it had been fifty years earlier. People of all races, nationalities, and ages made up the crowd. Unlike the group fifty years ago who came to the march dressed in their Sunday best, 2013 marchers, including myself, dressed for comfort in jeans, T-shirts and athletic shoes.

I waited for a long time in a gigantic line to pass through security and onto the grounds. With a scaffold-wraped Washington Monument behind me, and the Lincoln Memorial in front, I sat under a tree on a hill across from the reflecting pool. A giant screen televised the program for those of us who sat far away from the stage.

When I wasn’t conferencing or marching, I visited museums. I am an artist and I love visiting the museums of the Smithsonian, which are all free to the public. Since there was no way I could see everything, I focused on contemporary art exhibits at the National Gallery, the Hirshhorn, and the Museum of African Art. The beautiful and ornate costumes, drawings, and sets in, Diaghilev and the Ballet Russes,  1909-1929: When Art Danced with Music,  made it my favorite exhibit. I was reminded of my days as a ballet student. I love garments, costumes, and textiles, especially old ones, so I loved this exhibit!!! I also enjoyed looking at the wonderful mobiles by Alexander Calder. My next favorite exhibit was, Earth Matters, at the Museum of African Art. This exhibition featured traditional art and the works of contemporary artists from all over Africa that were inspired by the earth. A pyramid sculpture made by one of my favorite artists, Ghanaian sculpture El Anatsui, caught my eye.

I also visited the American Indian Museum, which had opened since my last visit to DC. I loved walking through the sculpture and flower gardens. They were nice places to cool down and relax.

I finally got to visit the Martin Luther King, Jr., monument located in a very peaceful spot near the water and the famous cherry trees. Dr. King’s likeness emerges from a mountainous chunk. A semicircular wall engraved with wisdom-filled quotes from his speeches creates a cradling backdrop for the towering sculpture.

My trip ended too soon. It took some effort for me to get to Washington, but I was so glad that I went. I have always admired the brave people that made up the ranks of the civil rights movement. I have been living in the year 1963 for over two and a half years while writing Fearless Freedom, and attending the 50^th Anniversary of the March on Washington was the perfect way to celebrate the publishing of my novel.

Like my character, Nicey Givens, in Fearless Freedom, the people who marched fifty years ago didn’t know if the march would be peaceful or dangerous, successful or a failure. Many of them had been beaten and jailed on previous marches. They were taking a risk, but they believed in their cause. They wanted to make our country better. Fifty years later, we have laws that prohibit discrimination, but laws don’t change hearts and we still have much to do to complete the work started fifty years ago.