In 1944, Thurman cofounded the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco-an interracial congregation intentionally designed to break through the barriers that separated people on the basis of race, color, creed, or national origin. Prior to coming to Boston University, Thurman’s life took an unexpected detour in the Bay Area. He preferred to serve as a caretaker and spiritual advisor to those who did, among them Jesse Jackson, Marian Wright Edelman, and Dr.
By the time the Civil Rights Movement took shape in the United States, Thurman was a nationally recognized human rights advocate, though he did not take to marching and mobilizing on the streets. It was on this trip that he met Mohandas Gandhi and, in discussion with India’s emancipator, explored the power of non-violent direct action as a mechanism for social change. As an educator, Thurman took time to engage his students in deep conversation about their unrealized potential, prompting them with questions like, “Who are you, really?” and “Who do you want to be?”Īs Thurman’s profile grew in America, he and his wife, Sue Bailey Thurman, were asked to lead a Negro delegation to Southeast Asia in 1935. Following his studies, Thurman began his forays as a faculty member, first serving as the Director of Religious Life at Morehouse and Spelman Colleges in Atlanta, and then as the first dean of Andrew Rankin Chapel at Howard University. By this time, the boy who couldn’t go to high school in his hometown had grown to be the valedictorian of his college classes. Thurman never forgot that act of kindness, and dedicated his autobiography to the man on the platform who “restored his broken dreams.”Īfter high school, Thurman attended both Morehouse College and Colgate Rochester Divinity School. This stranger changed the trajectory of Thurman’s life, giving him the funds he needed to get to Jacksonville. Thurman thought his adventure was doomed to end on that platform until an “anonymous stranger” approached him and asked him why he was crying.
When he arrived at the train station to make his trek north to Jacksonville, he was shocked to learn that while he had enough money for the fare, he needed more to check his trunk. Young Howard was only fourteen years old when he left the comforts of home in pursuit of knowledge at boarding school (there was no high school for black children in Daytona Beach then). Though his family had little to no means, they loved him dearly, and throughout his life, Thurman (Hon.’67) would often attribute his success to his family’s courage and sacrifice. It began in Daytona Beach, Florida at the turn of the century on November 18, 1899-Thurman’s birthday. Like many human stories, Howard Thurman’s story is one of resiliency, bravery, and hope.
0 kommentar(er)
