The Observer, January 26, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 14
Southgate to recount trek along Underground Railroad
Today at 12:30 p.m., members of the Cleveland and Case communities will come together in the Amasa Stone Chapel to celebrate the lives of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King.
To honor the determination and achievements of the Kings, along with their activist peers, Case has invited Joan Southgate to speak at the annual MLK, Jr. Convocation.
Joan Southgate, a Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences alumnus, will speak on her inspiration and determination to complete a 519-mile journey through Ohio's Underground Railroad across Pennsylvania to New York and ending in St. Catharine's, Canada.
Southgate's journey was inspired by her desire to commemorate her enslaved ancestors, the courage of those who escaped, and the strength of those who persevered through their atrocious conditions.
In order to make her experience more congruent with those of the blacks escaping slavery, Southgate also stayed in safe houses, or the homes of strangers willing to help, while walking the 350 miles through Ohio.
Due to the physical exertion, resources, and determination needed to complete a 519-mile trek following the Underground Railroad, friends and family doubted the 78-year-old woman would even begin the trip. Yet, those who doubted her continued to support her, including her family, coworkers, friends, and members of the organizations in which she is involved.
After making the necessary accommodations, finding safe houses, and preparing emergency vehicles, Southgate began her trip in Ripley, Ohio. After 59 days, during some of which she walked up to 10 miles, Southgate arrived in University Circle, where she provided words of wisdom, similar to those she gave to many students throughout her trek.
Inspired by her experience and the desire to spread knowledge and awareness, Southgate wrote a curriculum for school age children. She also wrote a book, In Their Path, to chronicle the experiences and people whom she met while traversing the Ohio Underground Railroad.
This incredible journey comprises part of the reason Southgate was chosen as the speaker for this year's convocation.
"Her travels led her to remarkable insights and reflections that when shared have a profound impact on the listener/reader. Not unlike Martin Luther King himself, she showed courage in the face of profound obstacles. As a university we can surely benefit from hearing her story and interpreting how we might fulfill our own dreams," said Kathryn Hall, Director of Human Resources' Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity.
MLK, Jr. Day and stories of those, such as Southgate, who accomplish amazing feats to increase equality and awareness serve to remind us that not only African-Americans, but all Americans, have made progress.
Yet, still more can be done.
Instead of viewing MLK, Jr. Day as just a holiday, those of this university should use it to contemplate the progress which Americans have made, and the dreams which those like Southgate inspire us to realize.
