Carrying on Dr. King’s Dream, the historical past of the civil rights motion in Fort Wayne

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA21) – A 21Country teacher is piecing together the details of the Fort Wayne civil rights movement to bring the past to light.

The first book by Bishop Luer’s history teacher Christopher Elliott, “Before the Dream”, deals with today’s racial account. He also adds historical context with clips from Fort Wayne newspapers and interviews with children of parishioners that Dr. King brought to town.

“America was too busy celebrating Dr. King’s dream and then very little time to repeat Dr. King’s dream,” said Rev. Bill McGill of Imani Baptist Church.

Meeting with Dr. King

Nearly 57 years ago, Rev. Bill McGill met Dr. Martin Luther King in Cleveland, Ohio. It was October 23, 1964 and McGill was only 8 years old, but it made a lasting impact.

McGill said, “Dr. King came up to me and shook my hand and I’m sure he told young people wherever he went, but I took it personally. «Dr. King said, “You have something else. I see you will never go to the beat of the usual drummer, you go to the beat of another drummer. I see greatness in you. “

Since that day he has promised to do his best to meet these expectations.

“If you are an 8 year old without a father at home, raised by a politically active mother and on a socially responsible agenda, you will be fed daily. things like that stay with you, ”said McGill.

Dr. King’s visit to Fort Wayne

Paul Helmke’s framed Martin Luther King autograph under his Time Magazine cover.

About a year earlier, the future mayor of Fort Wayne, Paul Helmke, when he was 14, met Dr. King.

“When he spoke, he was imposing and his message was imposing and you could say that you were in the presence of greatness when you were with him,” said Helmke.

During that visit to Fort Wayne on June 5, 1963, Dr. King in the old Scottish Rite Cathedral. It is now the Robert Goldstine Auditorium in the USF Performing Arts Center downtown. This was King’s first and only visit to town.

“I had contributed 25 cents to the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and had a small receipt for him. I asked Dr. King asked if he would be willing to give me his autograph on the back of the receipt for him and he signed his name, ”said Paul Helmke.

Fight for civil rights

Martin Luther King’s visit to Fort Wayne fell between two monumental moments in our nation’s struggle for civil rights. Months earlier, Dr. King wrote his now famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and gave his “I Have a Dream” speech after visiting Washington during the march.

“I think it benefits people to understand the bigger picture of how we got to where we are today, not just nationally, but locally, right here in Fort Wayne, to understand the process of how we are together Over time and as we have evolved I’ve made progress, ”said author Christopher Elliott.

Hotel Van Orman

When Elliott began investigating King’s visit to Fort Wayne, he did not find a comprehensive report. As he discovered more, he realized that there was a story to be shared.

One discovery that Elliot discovered was that the ministers Dr. King’s visit arranged for him to stay close to the Scottish Rite at the Van Orman Hotel, which is now a car park on the corner of Berry and Harrison.

Images provided by the Allen County Public Library.

The hotel, however, had a long history of disapproving of blacks – after all, Elliott said the owner reluctantly made the change to allow blacks to stay at the hotel but not eat at the restaurant.

“The Reverend Adams found that unacceptable, so he had a number of court battles with Mr. Van Orman,” said Elliott. “And he made sure that Dr. King and his crew not only stayed at the Hotel Van Orman but were also served in the restaurant, and he made sure that his state was free.”

“Seedbed of Hostility”

Author Christopher Elliott said through his research that he confirms what he already knew that the struggle for civil rights is not just happening in the south.

Rev. McGill says there was still an undercurrent of racism in the Midwest.

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The group “Citizens for Equality through Separation” protested against Dr. King’s visit outside the Scottish Rite Auditorium along Berry Street.

“So while there was slight variation in warmth and again some level of hospitality, there were still seedbeds of hostility,” said McGill. “Let’s remember that in Indiana, the last American lynching was on the street in Marion.”

McGill insists the fight isn’t over. He wants all Americans to wear the swing of those early civil rights activists.

“I’ve tried again to go on, the older I get, the more mature I get, in a way that blesses their memory, but also looking to this new generation to let them know that we are a new generation of Activists need to be willing to stand up peacefully and productively and campaign for us to become the real United States of America. “

The book “Before the Dream” will be released on July 26, 2021. Amazon, Barnes and Noble will carry Elliott’s book. He would also like to arrange it in the local bookstores.