DAYTON, Ohio — It was 1995, and Edmund Moore and his friends had just taken a trip that would make history.

“Too often, Black men in our society are looked upon negative—as we’re violent, we’re not doing any good in our society, and it was an opportunity for me to join other Black men and do something positive,” said Moore.

What You Need To Know

  • Dayton engineer Edmund Moore was one of hundreds of thousands who went to the Million Man March

  • Twenty-five years later, Moore says the lessons learned still apply today

  • Moore says the march inspired him to write a book and give back to the community

They traveled from Ohio to Washington D.C. to be a part of the Million Man March. The march, led by Louis Farrakhan, brought together hundreds of thousands of Black men from across the country. They left filled with hope and optimism.

“What I got out of the Million Man March was we need to look at ourselves, and take care of ourselves spiritually, morally, and then from that point, we are to go and work in our communities and build it up,” said Moore.

In fact, they took a pledge during the march to do that — build up Black communities. But 25 years later, he says the same battle still goes on today.

“Socially and politically — and economically — we’ve taken a step back, and that is something that as a community we need to work on to build ourselves up more,” said Moore.

It’s part of the reason the Dayton engineer says he wrote a book on how to do that — build each other up at home with family. He also partnered with local charities that are giving back to the black community, but he says there’s still a long way to go.

“We all need to stay in communications and be a collective body for good,” said Moore.