Last month marked 60 years since The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (The March), a historic protest gathering on The Mall in front of the Lincoln Memorial and attended by over 250,000 people. Held on August 28, 1963, it is famous for Martin Luther King Jr.’s "I Have a Dream" speech calling for an end to racism.
Viewed as a way advocate for the civil and economic rights of African Americans, grassroots organizers of The March gathered in nondescript places, such as church basements and community rooms. One such place was the Harlem headquarters, located at 170 West 130th Street, which now has its own Harlem Heritage Marker.
Friendship Baptist Church loaned The March’s organizers space in the building, which also served girls at the turn of the 20th century as the Sojourner Truth House, offered art classes to Renaissance students like Jacob Lawrence as the Utopia House, and later provided a safe space for church friends to collaborate as the Friendship House.
Principal Angel and his family attended the unveiling of the plaque on August 28, 2023, as part of his advocacy work with Save Harlem Now!, which helped achieve Landmark status for the Historic District the building and the Historic District that surrounds it. NYC Mayor Eric Adams was among the dignitaries at the event, which was broadcast and covered on CBS New York, NBC New York, and YouTube. In the words of the Mayor “the grandest of ideas do not take place in the grandest of places. It takes place in the basements, in the hall, and small church environments [like this building]. That's how it's done.”