Streams of Mercy

On this Martin Luther King Day, I learned of a very special new book, and the story behind it. On the summer day in 1963 that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream’’ speech and led the March on Washington, Sharon Langley, then 11 months old, was placed on a colorful wooden horse on a carousel at Baltimore’s Gwynn Oak Amusement Park. Her ride would become synonymous with the civil rights movement, as she and her family were among the first African Americans to legally enter the formerly segregated property, and she was the first African American to ride on the carousel. (Her parents had planned to participate in the March on Washington, but couldn’t find a babysitter!)

This month, Langley, a school administrator in Southern California, along with co-author Amy Nathan and illustrator Floyd Cooper, is celebrating the publication of A Ride to Remember: A Civil Rights Story, a picture book chronicling that long-ago day. The horse, by the way, is now named Freedom Rider, has a plaque with Langley’s name on it, and is still providing rides to youngsters on the carousel, now located in the middle of the National Mall. Langley, 57, is a featured speaker for the Reginald F. Lewis African American History Museum’s MLK Day Celebration this very day.

Her parents taught her: “We can make a difference. One family can make a difference.” She hopes her book will show this, written as it is from the eyes of a young black child asking her parents why black children had been kept out of the park. The parents explain segregation and the civil rights movement in a way the child can understand. Langley wants children to know that they too can make a difference. "Can you be a part of change? Sure you can. We have an obligation to be part of change."

What a blessing to see the civil rights movement through the eyes of a child, and to see how far that child has come in her lifetime. How timely the message is for our day – reminding us of our obligation to be part of the change. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” May these words find a place in our hearts this MLK Day.

Elizabeth