Spiver W. Gordon unveils monument outside Christian Valley Church.

Spiver W. Gordon Gives award to Chief Warhorse Gillium, guest speaker.

Some of the young people who participated in the Greene County Freedom Day Program.

More than one hundred citizens from across Greene County celebrated the county’s ‘Freedom Day’ on Saturday July 29th, which commemorated the 54th anniversary of the July 29, 1969, Special Election, which elected Black people to control the County Commission and School Board in the county. The celebration was held at Christian Valley Baptist Church in the Tishabee community of Greene County.

Greene County was the first in Alabama and one of the first in the nation, to elect Black public officials to control the county government and school system, since the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. In the November 1970 elections, Rev. William McKinley Branch, pastor of Christian Valley was elected the first Black Probate Judge in America and Rev. Thomas Gilmore was elected the second Black Sheriff in Alabama.

The Special Election of July 29, 1969, helped to realize the promise of democracy in the southern part of the United States, wherein the 85% majority Black voting population of Greene County elected a government representative of the people living in the county.
This victory did not come without struggle, the Black candidates, running on the National Democratic Party of Alabama (NDPA), were deliberately left off the ballot in the regular November 1968 election. The NDPA and local candidates went to Federal court to seek a new election with the Black candidates on the ballot. This legal effort was successful, and the U. S. Supreme Court ordered the Special Election of July 29, 1969.

Spiver W. Gordon, President of the Alabama Civil Rights Freedom Movement, unveiled a marker, that was fastened near the front entrance of the Christian Valley Baptist Church to honor the ‘footsoldiers’ of the movement, many with roots in the Tishabee and Forkland communities. The marker lists the names of a hundred community people that were involved in the freedom and voting rights struggle in Greene County.

There were many speakers at the program who remembered and celebrated the Special Election of 1969 and the subsequent history of Greene County which “made life better for everyone”. Dr. Carol Zippert mentioned her efforts to make it a policy of the Greene County Board of Education to infuse Black history in all subjects and classes. “The staff did not do enough training and supervision to make this really happen, but the policy is there for young leaders to take up, especially in these times when states are trying to limit Black history and the teaching of the destructive impacts of slavery.”

District 1 County Commissioner, Garria Spencer recalled serving on the Commission with Judge Branch and “his spirit and work to honor and celebrate everyone.” Spencer said he was concerned that the State Legislature did not follow the Federal court’s instructions to create two Congressional Districts, where Black candidates could win election. He also reflected that former President Donald Trump was an idiot, who said he will keep running for President even if he is convicted by a jury and sent to jail.

State Representative Curtis Travis said, “it is important to look backward but also forward in our view of history. He mentioned that we need to attract more lawyers, doctors and other professionals to Greene County and the Black Belt. Right now, we face a situation where Circuit Judge Eddie Hardaway, who is Black will be retiring and we have no Black attorneys living in the area who can run for this important law enforcement position.” Travis also mentioned the travesty that the Republican Supermajority in the Alabama Legislature could not bring itself to do right and create greater justice by voting for two Black majority Congressional Districts in Alabama.
Many speakers highlighted the importance of involving young people in carrying-on and furthering the civil rights and voting rights movement in our nation, state.
Several groups of young people spoke as though they were local historical figures, reminding the audience of the many Black public officials we have elected over the years in Greene County, starting from July of 1969.

Chief Elwin “Warhorse” Gillum of Slidell, Louisiana, who was the guest speaker, showed pictures of her Indian ancestors. She highlighted the fact that many Black people are indigenous to the southeast. “Some of us are descendants of Africa, who migrated to north and south America long before Columbus. She said she was doing research on the Indian settlements at Moundville and Chief Tuscaloosa, who was a Black Indian, who defeated Spanish explorer, Hernando Desoto, before 1492.” Chief Warhorse encouraged young people to learn and study about history.

Wording on Tishabee Footsoldiers Monument

The Democrat is reprinting the complete text of the Tishabee Footsoldiers Monument to preserve it for history.