Northridge : Rally at CSUN Backs Million Man March

His voice booming across an outdoor courtyard at Cal State Northridge on Monday, Fabian Speights reminded his classmates that the Million Man March--and its message of black empowerment--wasn’t limited to the nation’s capital.

“We know that everybody can’t go to D.C.,” the 22-year-old president of the Black Student Union declared, staring out at a sea of African American faces gathered in the University Student Union. “There are black people right here in Northridge.”

Addressing about 300 students at a rally organized to show support for the Washington march, Speights echoed Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan’s call for a day of atonement, asking men and women alike to commit themselves to the “upliftment and liberation” of the black community.

“Black people, we’re here today to atone,” he said. “We’re here today to look at ourselves, not to point the finger.”

Speights said he wasn’t disappointed to be spending the day at CSUN, noting that the message of the Million Man March would resonate across the country.

“This is a national movement,” he explained. “What’s going on in Washington is a centerpiece.”

As students strolled past on their way to class, 19-year-old Xanthine Moore sat at a table across the courtyard, urging passersby to register to vote. The BSU hoped to sign up 500 new voters by day’s end, she explained.

“I hope that people realize that this is important and that they start to stand up more,” she said.

For two dozen boys visiting from Pacoima’s Calvary Baptist Christian School, the daylong event was more than a field trip, it was an education as well.

“I got to learn more about my heritage and to take care of our women,” said Joshua Baker. The 12-year-old Pacoima resident said the day gave him a “good feeling” and taught him to be a responsible person. “I think it was a good learning experience,” said 14-year-old Jeremy Smith of Sylmar. “Hopefully [people] will take the information and apply it to themselves.”

Radford Vaughn Jr. said he would.

“I think I learned to lead people instead of being a follower,” the 11-year-old Lake View Terrace resident said.