On January 20, 2025, students, faculty, staff, and community members representing all parts of Longwood, Hampden-Sydney, and Farmville came together for the student-led Unity March and forum held at the Robert Russa Moton Museum.
The date was both Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Inauguration Day. Two hours before the march, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States. In an interview, Longwood junior and march organizer Logan Macklin said, “I feel like, on this day, we have two major figures in American history, but on such opposite sides of the spectrum.”
“I think politics, sadly, has become such an integral part in American everyday life, that we have to work together and at times, put the parties aside, put the colors aside, and really understand what we need as a people to move forward together,” said Macklin.
In his opening remarks to attendees, Macklin recalled the presidential elections. He said, “I remember walking on campus [on November 6], like it was yesterday. There was a feeling on campus that I had never felt before. It felt heavy.”
“Since that day I knew we needed something like this. I knew that we needed to all come together and help push and re-energize our focus,” Said Macklin, “ Martin Luther King, Jr. was focused on bringing people together rather than dividing people. And I think that that is the purpose of this event.”
Before the speeches, The Rotunda interviewed several attendees who expressed a desire to surround themselves with like-minded people. Senior McKayla Kiser, who attended the march, talked about the importance of January 20 as MLK Day, and wished that it not be overshadowed by other national affairs. Another attendee, junior Aiden Brown, reflected on the importance of hosting an event like this in the current political climate, and said, “If Longwood wants us to be citizen leaders, then we need to be talking about current events.”
The keynote speech was delivered by Dr. James Fedderman, former Virginia Education Association president and Longwood class of 1998.
Fedderman’s speech centered on the importance of community support in advocating for racial, social, and economic justice. “Only when we are an organization, people, commonwealth, and a nation that makes ‘with liberty and justice for all’ a reality for all, will we experience the kinds of security and peace of mind that we seek and deserve. Then it matters not who is sitting in the White House, because we will be a Commonwealth that takes care of everyone,” he said.
Macklin closed the forum with a call for unity. “I think Dr. King would have wanted us to, regardless of the color of our party or the color of our skin, to come together and move forward together as a university, as a campus, and as a community,” Macklin said.
Due to concerns over extremely cold weather, the March portion of the event was postponed. About this sudden change of plans, Macklin said, “At first I was very frustrated and I was upset, but just like anything I was able to overcome.”
Concluding his speech, Macklin said, “What I would like us to do as a nice wrap up is to march out of this building together, so that way we can enter this new world with a new focus, a new drive and a new passion.”
As students, faculty, and community members marched out of Moton as one, Longwood’s Chief of Police Angela Comer filled the auditorium with song. She sang “We Shall Not Be Moved” and “We Shall Overcome,” songs which empowered the Labor and Civil Rights movements of the 1930s-60s. Some sang, most clapped or stomped along, and the sound of solidarity reverberated through the halls of Prince Edward County’s historic Civil Rights landmark.
On the importance of the Unity March for minority students, Macklin said, “One thing that made it so important for me was, a lot of the time on these campuses, we feel alone.” He added, “Being able to have that sense of community and power can really be a change factor.”
When he started planning this event in November, Macklin was prepared to do it alone. Soon, he found support in Comer, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Moton Museum, Hampden Sydney’s Minority Student Union, and numerous other organizations and people from the Farmville community.
“It really made me emotional when I saw my event being sent to every student on campus, and I think it honestly helped that, ironically, getting postponed just added another email into students' inboxes,” said Macklin.
Mackin, reflecting on the march, said, “One thing that I would want to push to every student is that this event shows that change is possible. And that just because you are the only person who might feel a way about something, 100% of the time, you're not the only one.”
“I think that this march, this protest, this day of Unity, shows that anything is possible,” he said.
See more photos from the Unity March here
