Sixty-two years ago, a quarter of a million people gathered for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. On today's show, we take a look at the life and legacy of a central organizer of the march, Bayard Rustin. Rustin was an openly gay civil rights leader and a trusted advisor to labor leader A. Phillip Randolph and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This show first aired in June 2021.

Featuring:

• Bayard Rustin, architect of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom
• Ashon Crawley, University of Virginia Associate Professor of Religious Studies and African-American and African Studies
• Nancy Kates, filmmaker and producer of _Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin_
• Bill Sutherland, Fellowship of Reconciliation
• Reverend A.J. Muste, pacifist and mentor of Rustin
• George Houser. Fellowship of Reconciliation
• Louis John, nephew of Bayard Rustin
• Devi Prasad, pacifist

Credits:

Making Contact Team

• Episode host: Anita Johnson
• Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang
• Executive Director: Jina Chung
• Engineer: Jeff Emtman
• Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain

Music

• Cory Gray – "Medieval Tension"
• Ketsa – "This Way Joyous"
• Blue Dot Sessions – "Rally"
• Blue Dot Sessions – "Rayling"
• Dee Yan-Key – "Hold On"
• Dee Yan-Key – "Go Down Moses"
• Blue Dot Sessions – "3rd Chair"
• Andy G. Cohen – "Our Young Guts"

Learn More:

Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin, by John D'Emilio | Bayard Rustin Fund | Troublemaker for Justice: The Story of Bayard Rustin, the Man Behind the March on Washington, by Jacqueline Houtman, Michael G. Long, Walter Naegle | I Must Resist: Bayard Rustin's Life in Letters by Bayard Rustin, edited by Michael G. Long | Bayard Rustin: Troubles I've Seen | Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers | PBS on the March on Washington | History.com on the March on Washington | AFL-CIO and Bayard Rustin | Washington Post | NY Times

Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.