Graham and Greensboro will have civil rights marches this weekend that organizers believe will be comparable to some of the larger demonstrations held during the summer.
Spearheaded by the Rev. Gregory Drumwright, a Greensboro-based activist, the “I Am Change” march will take place Friday, Oct. 30, in Greensboro and again Saturday, Oct. 31, in Graham, and is expected to feature appearances by members of George Floyd’s family and other prominent figures. Both marches, according to Drumwright, will emphasize the importance of voting by leading demonstrators to polling places in both cities.
Saturday is the final day North Carolinians will have to early vote.
“North Carolina leads the nation in voter suppression laws and efforts since 2012,” Drumwright said, referencing the Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate parts of the Voting Rights Act. “It worked in 2012 and 2016. It is important now that everyone advocates for change.”
A native of Burlington, Drumwright has been an activist for a number of years. This past summer, after the murder of George Floyd, Drumwright has been particularly active, organizing demonstrations in communities across the nation, particularly in the eastern region. Drumwright wanted to include his hometown, having first-hand knowledge with what he described as racial strife within Alamance.
"I was with George Floyd’s family in Houston preparing for his memorial when I got a request … to come back to my hometown and help them organize the systemic oppression that has been lingering there for so long,” Drumwright said adding that he helped local activists form the group Alamance for Change. “They have been very busy, every weekend, relentlessly … at the Courthouse Square.”
One of the key issues Drumwright and other local activists have honed in on is the Confederate monument at Graham’s Courthouse Square. Since the protests began in earnest near the start of summer, Courthouse Square has been ground zero for a number of demonstrations and arrests.
This is, according to Drumwright, part of the reason why courthouse square will be included in the march’s route on Saturday. Drumwright remembers growing up with the monument.
"I passed that monument going to and from school, work, church,” Drumwright said adding that, as a child he and others were never given the true history of the Confederate monument. Drumwright emphasized this by describing the mile marker describing Graham’s Confederate monument.
“I didn’t know about this, the marker there uplifts the Confederacy and it uplifts those Confederate generals who killed Wyatt Outlaw, no mention of Wyatt Outlaw,” Drumwright said.
Wyatt Outlaw was a prominent Graham official and civil rights activist who was lynched by white supremacists in 1870. He has since gone on to become an important figure among African Americans living in Alamance County and, increasingly, beyond Alamance’s borders.
“Wyatt Outlaw wasn’t a normal citizen, he was a public official,” Drumwright said. “For that monument to stand and for his legacy to be hidden, we can’t stop until it comes down and something in Wyatt Outlaw’s memory goes up.”
Drumwright compared Graham to the nearby town of Lexington and their activist’s efforts to their statue removed. Drumwright said it was all thanks to their activists who refused to let up. He added Graham has activists that are similarly committed.
“I respect the efforts of those who have been doing this work that live there,” Drumwright said. “Doing this work before we started marching and since we started marching. All of it matters.”
Drumwright hopes that all of Graham’s activists and more come out to both Friday and Saturday’s protests. Drumwright is anticipating a sizeable crowd, a possible repeat of a demonstration that took place in July. What Drumwright doesn’t want is a repeat of arrests.
"We are not in agreement, right now, about the rally taking place at the conclusion of our march,” Drumwright said. “That is definitely something that is concerning to us.”
Drumwright said there have been a number of rumors, particularly within the Graham community about the upcoming demonstration. Drumwright said he has rumors about the upcoming being a violent demonstrations and that protestors will show up with the intent to destroy property. Drumwright said this is not the case.
“It was alleged in July that we were coming with guns,” Drumwright said. “It wasn’t true then and it isn’t true now. It was alleged that we were coming with violence, it was not true then and it is not true now.”
Graham’s march begins 11 a.m. at Wayman’s Chapel AME, 592 N. Main St., Graham.
