BALTIMORE — Thirty years ago, African American men from around the country flocked to Washington D.C. with a common goal to better their lives and their communities.
That's a mission men in Baltimore say is far from over.
Fostering unity, promoting brotherhood, nurturing progress, and more.
Hear from the men who attended the commemoration as they speak on the importance of the Million Man March
Those were just some of the reasons behind a large number of African American men gathering in DC for the Million Man March in 1995.
Thirty years later to the day, some of those men came together in Baltimore to commemorate the day,.
Derrick Chase was a 23-year-old student organizer at Morgan State University at the time.
"If you could imagine a sea of young men, old men, Muslims, Christians, every facet of our lives on one accord. And the messages that came across the podiums reflected the diversity as well as it reflected the unity," Chase said.
Each man had their own reason for attending, including him.
"In the early 90s, there was a lot of suffering and killing of young Black men and there was a call just in the general atmosphere that we had to be responsive if we wanted to survive as a people. So as a young man, I felt that conviction."
Many of the events' takeaways stayed with the men as they journeyed into the rest of the lives.
"It had that big of an impact on me. Not only did I help to found this charter school Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys, but I built several other businesses and employed people, restaurants in Baltimore," said Edwin Avent, CEO of the Baltimore Collegiate School for Boys.
Although Black men have made many strides in the past decades, they say the work is far from over leading them to wonder, what do we need to do to move forward as a community?
"Self determination. It is unifying with each other. It is breaking down barriers of trust, following leadership," Avent said.
These man left the march 30 years ago ready to respond to a call to action.
Now they have a message of their own to send to young Black men.
"Education is the key, staying up, staying motivated, still believing in yourself and your ability to make a difference in this world."
There are more commemoration events scheduled for this weekend.
On October 17, there is a love letter to the Million Man March event from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m at Coppin State University.
On October 18, there's a Brother to Brotherhood town hall at Morgan State University at 10 a.m.
