In honor of Dream Week commemorating Martin Luther King Jr., guest speaker Dorothy Butler Gilliam, the only black female journalist who covered the civil rights movement, had plenty to say about her experiences.

‘I was destined to be a journalist, and I’ve always had strong black teachers that encouraged me and told me, ‘You can make it in spite of…” said Gilliam, leaving the statement unfinished. ‘I did this and endured the struggle to make America better.’

Gilliam vividly described life as a black journalist during the civil rights movement, recounting how difficult it was for her due to the racism that existed. She shared her stories not only to explain the hardships of a black journalist during the movement but also to discuss King’s accomplishments and how people today can help finish his vision.

The Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and former editor of The Washington Post spoke Wednesday night in Maxwell Auditorium about her experiences in covering stories such as the integration of Little Rock Central High School, also known as the Little Rock Nine, and the University of Mississippi.

She explained how, during her career, black reporters were not allowed to complain if they had nowhere to sleep when reporting in Southern towns. Reporters had to sneak in wearing ‘overalls and muddy shoes’ and wrap up their typewriters to blend in with other black people. Many black journalists adopted fake identities to avoid inevitable problems and violence that would arise if they were discovered covering a story.

When a student asked if she was ever afraid to cover a story or ever thought about leaving the field because of the tension at that time, Gilliam said she hadn’t.

‘It was a part of my job,’ she said. ‘I was just doing my job.’

Gilliam spoke about King’s vision for America and black people today.

‘I believe Dr. King would want us to be more complacent,’ Gilliam said. ‘More serious about education, family life, work and social development.’ 

She said there are more black men in jail today than in college and that she feels schools are more segregated today than in the past. Gilliam also emphasized that Americans should finish the work King started and be a part of making a difference. 

Many students said they were thrilled to hear Gilliam speak.

‘I came to hear about her experiences as a black journalist,’ said Thad Green, a graduate magazine, newspaper and online journalism student. ‘I think she did a really good job of outlining her experience of being one of the few black journalists to cover the movement at that time.’ 

Though Gilliam thoroughly spoke of the past,she also addressed the present. When asked how she feels about black culture today, she said she thinks hip-hop music is detrimental to the black community because of its objectifying lyrics about women. The crowd was engaged with Gilliam, and one student jumped to the defense of modern black culture.

‘Black people are not what they are illustrated as on television,’ said Donald Saint-Germain, a junior African-American studies and policy studies dual major. ‘You can’t look at the culture through a pigeon hole.’

Gilliam said although she sees progress, there are still obstacles yet to overcome. She used an analogy and said being black is like ‘being in a race with a leg weight.’

Gilliam ended the lecture by advising the audience members to not let anyone discourage them and said perseverance is key.

Said Gilliam: ‘Dr. King would want us to pay attention to what we have in common and to see people act on the issues that they see.’

yjbrown@syr.edu

Published on January 26, 2011 at 12:00 pm