Online Exclusive: Doc Ed Holliday: What I Saw at the Restoring Honor Rally

The Main Street Journal Website

The following article is exclusive to the Main Street Journal Online. Click “Subscribe Online” above to start your subscription.

What I Saw at the Restoring Honor Rally
By: Doc Ed Holliday

On August 28, 2010, more than 500,000 people from all over the country gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial to restore honor in America. I was blessed to be a part of the Restoring Honor rally. It was indeed an honor and a privilege to be on stage when Dr. Alveda King spoke as she honored her uncle on the 47th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s world-changing “I Have a Dream” speech. Alveda had asked me to travel to Washington, D.C. and stand with her as she spoke.

Since I first met Alveda in 2004 we have built a friendship with our desire to see biblical principles pursued through the content of character and not the color of a person’s skin. I had worked with her during the 40th anniversary of her uncle’s assassination at events in Memphis, a book-signing in Tupelo and various other projects over the years. She has always been principled and rock solid when it comes to standing on her values that were taught to her by her father, A.D. King, her Uncle Martin, and her grandfather Martin Luther King, Sr. All these men were Baptist preachers who stood firmly on the Word of God and preached Truth from the bible. Alveda’s passion is bringing civil rights to the babies in the wombs of their mothers. She stands staunchly for the God she believes in even voting for John McCain because he was pro-life rather than the first African American who would become president who was profoundly for abortion. Therefore anyone can recognize that she is determined to stand firmly on the principles that her uncle taught—content of character over the color of a person’s skin.

She had ten of her friends on stage with her, and as we prayed and sang together just minutes before we were to go on, she smiled and said, “Ed, you know you are my token white.” We both laughed. I am proud that from all her friends who happen to be white in America that she would ask someone from Tupelo, Mississippi, to stand beside her at such a momentous occasion in her life. Alveda is very spiritual and she ministers as she speaks and sings. I believe with all my heart that God opened the door for her to be seen by the nation on 8/28 and that God has great things prepared for her future. Her speech was the best one I have ever heard her give. I stood and watched as she was introduced by Glenn Beck and I was thinking that she should be careful going down the steps toward the speaker’s podium. But her feet were like the blessed feet of a messenger delivering Good News as she seemed to fly down the concrete steps and looked as if she was going to attack the podium and whack the devil with a spiritual two by four. With enthusiasm and grace she dealt with wounds of race by reminding us that we are one race—the human race. She challenged us and all America to honor her Uncle Martin by living out his dream.

I was not nervous about being in front of 500,000 people or thinking about the millions watching by television and internet. I was not nervous when Alveda told me backstage, “Now Ed, when we are singing don’t be still.” (I guess she knew that I was a Southern Baptist as we are not known for being pew jumpers during worship.) But as I and Alveda’s other friends and her two singers descended the steps to join her on stage, the thought hit me: I am going to be the only white person with ten black Americans on stage before the nation. I was thinking that the entire audience was going to be saying inside their heads, does this white man have any rhythm? With that thought running through my mind as we assembled on stage, I did get nervous. Then when I noticed that Alveda’s two special singers were not behind the podium as I thought that they would be, but directly beside me I thought, oh, no, when I am clapping my hands I cannot be offbeat. As the music started I noticed in my right eye’s peripheral vision Pastor Hoye’s (I stood beside his wife) outstretched hands keeping a steady and firm beat. Then I noticed a steady and perfect beat from my left eye’s peripheral vision by an audience member on the front row. That person was Sarah Palin. So between the steady beat of Sarah Palin and Pastor Hoyle I think I did all right beside my black brother and sisters on stage. It was an incredible time for me and one of the highlights of my life for which I will always be thankful to God and my friend, Alveda King.

Indeed Dr. Alveda King’s speaking at the rally was not without controversy within the black community around the country. She was asked by several leaders of the black community to not speak. But she rightly said that her uncle desired unity, and called for “white men and black men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics,” to all come together. At the rally’s end I stood behind Alveda, Sarah Palin, and Glenn Beck. I was in the second row locked arm in arm with Chief Bigpond, and one of the founders of the Frederick Douglass Foundation. I wondered if all the media was missing what was really happening. Dr. and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream was forming and pouring down like a spiritual refreshing rain in the gathering of what Glenn Beck called the restoration of the Black Robe Brigade. All together more than 240 priests, rabbis, pastors, bishops, and yes, even imams stood arm in arm in unity. Red, yellow, black, white, and brown we represented the desire to seek God first and his righteousness. As we all sang “Amazing Grace” to bagpipes, tears ran down my cheeks as I remembered Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s words.

Because I was a part of Alveda’s group I was allowed access to the “green room” where the participants (except Sarah Palin, she must have had her own special place) waited in an air-conditioned tent. There I was able to speak with the Missionary Baptist pastor C.L. Jackson who received the Faith award. He was introduced to the audience by Chief Bigpond. I was able to speak to both of them in the green room. They told me about how they sat by each other near the reflecting pool back in 1963, as Dr. King gave his historic speech. Pastor Jackson told me how he was warned not to drive through Mississippi on his way to Washington in 1963 lest his bus be bombed. The longtime African American pastor told me how he was proud of how Glenn Beck is now using his show to promote the need for America to turn back to God. Chief Bigpond reiterated to me how it was his desire to see all the Native American tribes across America to receive the life saving salvation found through Jesus Christ.

I was also able to speak to others including historian David Barton who did most of the organizing. His wife and adult children did a fantastic job of making the event go smoothly. David knows the history of America and its Judeo-Christian values better than anyone else on the face of the earth as far as I am concerned. For him to be able to work with Glenn Beck at such a high profile event was a blessing to our nation. David Barton’s many books and his www.wallbuilders.com website covers the history of America and what it means to be an American more thoroughly than any other history website.

My favorite person though was the disfigured Vietnam veteran Dave Roever (www.daveroever.org) who ended the rally with an amazing prayer. I had heard his amazing story the night before at the 8/27 Divine Destiny show at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Hearing this disfigured veteran tell about his tragedy and the years of recovery and his giving his life over to Jesus was probably one of the best single performances ever at the Lincoln Center. In fact, I would dare say that Glenn’s entire event that night was the best art performance honoring God that the Kennedy Center has ever seen. God blessed America that night. And here I found myself next to the man who had a prosthetic ear, eye, and part of his hip for a thumb. And as a dentist I knew that the contortions of his face as he spoke came from the compromises that had to be done just to make the man look humanly acceptable. Wow, what a story and now here I was talking to him and soon we found ourselves laughing and commenting on the rally as we watched the big screen televisions and the live feed. We talked and laughed in the green room as we slapped each other on the back if we had been friends for years. Dave and his wife have an outstanding ministry and even now as I write this he is going back to Iraq to be an inspiration to the men and women of our military who have paid a heavy price for serving and protecting our freedom. May God bless Dave and our United States military!

While in the green room I spoke with Chief Bigpond again and a little later a younger Native American pastor and his wife were leaving the tent. Chief Bigpond grabbed him by his hand and with a firm voice he stated, “Brother, remember, you are in Washington, D.C., whatever you do, DON’T SIGN ANY PAPERS!” They both burst out laughing and then so did I. Glenn Beck and David Barton did an outstanding job of bringing a healthy diversity into the Restoring Honor event.

At the end of the event the 240 Black Robe Brigade and others came up for the final song. When I followed my leader (Dr. Robert Smith, an African American pastor from Little Rock, Arkansas) up on to the stage to our final standing position, I turned to discover that I was on the second row right smack in the middle behind Glenn Beck. During “Amazing Grace” Alveda King and Sarah Palin were brought into place right in front of me. During Dave Roever’s ending prayer as he honored the Vietnam Veterans applause broke out in the crowd. I opened my eyes as I was looking down and all I could see was Sarah Palin’s French-manicured toe nails. She is as beautiful in person as she is on television. I did get to meet Sarah immediately after the rally for a brief moment. She was as gracious as she was beautiful and I believe the reason that she glows with a steadfast confidence is because she has a heart of gold and a desire to serve God Almighty. But God popped my pride of finally meeting Sarah because when I put my arm around her for a photo with my video camera I told the person taking the picture the wrong button to push. Now people will just have to take my word for it. But I do have the memory. Thank you, Sarah Palin for inspiring so many men and women and children across our great nation.

Dave finished his amazing prayer, Glenn asked us to make a difference when we got home, and I left knowing that America still has tremendous patriots, we still have citizens who are not afraid to call on God for answers. And, yes, we have an American who so loves his country that he would devote so much time and energy and money into making such a marvelous and unique day like 8/28 to come to fruition. Thank you for all who came, thank you, Dr. Alveda King for honoring me by your invitation to stand on stage as you spoke, and thank you Glenn Beck for the vision to restore honor and making it happen. May every American be blessed enough to see the replay of the divine Destiny event on 8/27 at the Kennedy Center and the 8/28 Restoring Honor rally. Indeed, America, may God shed his grace on thee.

Close Bookmark and Share This Page

Save to Browser Favorites / Bookmarks