WIDE AWAKE — The Weekly Opine

History and beauty abound in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. (Photo credit MTJP)

Embracing history

Vacationing last week, my significant significant other and I spent six nights on the road, including two nights in lovely Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and two nights in my favorite city, Washington, D.C. The trip East was bookended by one night going and one night coming home, traveling by rail, in a cozy Amtrak bedroom.

The two days spent in Harpers Ferry left me asking, "Is there a more historically significant, stunningly beautiful place in America?" Answer: probably not. Harpers Ferry is an amazing, walking, talking museum (full of history’s echoes like the fort from John Brown's uprising). Located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, it’s been wonderfully preserved and inhabited by knowledgeable, friendly people. Harpers Ferry is a simple yet complex treasure. Exploring the Appalachian Trail was eye-popping.

(L) Looking over the Potomac River into Virginia. (R) The fort John Brown raided in 1859, an uprising that historians say led to the Civil War. (Photos credit The Weekly Opine)

Harpers Ferry is soaked in history. The raid by abolitionist John Brown, arguably the backbreaking straw that started the Civil War. The establishment in 1867 of Storer’s College, founded as the first college in West Virginia to accept students of all sexes and all races. Storer’s also hosted conferences of the Niagra Group, the predecessor to the NAACP. And an epic Civil War battle was fought in Harpers Ferry in 1862, during which Confederate troops, led by General Stonewall Jackson, defeated 13,000 Union troops.

In a show of ‘sportsmanship’, Confederates allowed 13,000 Union prisoners in Harpers Ferry to go free, so long as they promised not to fight southern troops on Confederate land. During their transition, many of the Union prisoners landed in a squalid prison camp in Chicago that formerly held Confederate soldiers.

The definition of quaint: Harpers Ferry. (Photos credit The Weekly Opine)

Strategically, despite losing the battle in Harpers Ferry, the door opened for Union troops to repel General Robert E. Lee’s troops, now spread too thin, from pushing further into the North, despite Confederate success in Maryland.

The Union and Confederate armies alternated controlling Harpers Ferry from 1861 to 1864. As a result, Harpers Ferry feels part Union, part Confederate. Souvenir shops along main drag High Street reflect this confliction, selling both Union and Confederate army replica caps along with American and Confederate flags. I did not find this off-putting but simply a recognition of what transpired in a hamlet that is as pivotal to our history as anyplace in America.

(L) Riding Amtrak headed home passing through Harpers Ferry in West Virginia. Mountain on the left is in Maryland. Mountain closest on the right is in Virginia. (R) Pillars on the Shenandoah River that supported a bridge destroyed during the Civil War and, after it was repaired, was destroyed by a flood. (Photos credit The Weekly Opine)

To its credit, Harpers Ferry has not contracted the anti-woke bug. Rather than sidestep or bury parts of its history Harpers Ferry embraces all of it, seemingly without judgment or romanticism but with matter-of-fact acknowledgment that what happened there did happen.

Travel audible

Remember the scene from the movie “Silver Streak” when Gene Wilder’s character, having been tossed off the train, hitches a ride on a two-seater airplane to catch up with the train at its next destination? Last Friday, the Amtrak train we were supposed to catch at 11:30am, to travel from Harpers Ferry to Washington, D.C., was running hours behind schedule. Had we waited for the train (it finally arrived at 7:40pm) we would’ve missed dinner with friends at venerable Old Ebbitt Grill. We needed a Plan B.

Thankfully, Karen, the kind lady who owns the Town’s Inn where we stayed in Harpers Ferry, offered to drive us to D.C. Karen has a PhD in education and formerly taught English in the Middle East, as well as to foreign ambassadors living in Washington. Her fascinating stories, along with scenic Maryland and Virginia landscapes, made the 90-minute trip feel like 30 minutes. (Note: Amtrak refunded our fare, so it ended well.)

Clockwise, starting top left: Martin Luther King III; Rep. James Clyburn; Professor Michael Eric Dyson; House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. (Photos credit The Weekly Opine)

On Saturday, the March on Washington program was inspiring although unnecessarily long. After walking around awhile in front of the Lincoln Memorial, listening to prelim speakers, we strategically positioned ourselves near the VIP tent where prominent speakers awaited their time. Turns out it was like we had VIP access, without an official lanyard.

First, we saw CNN analyst Van Jones. Then, Professor Michael Eric Dyson. Martin Luther King III. Actor Mario Van Peebles. Former UN Ambassador Andrew Young. Actor Nick Cannon. MSNBC legal analyst Maya Wiley. Actor Sacha Baron Cohen. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.). Attorney Benjamin Crump. When I say we saw them, I mean we were within a few yards, sometimes a few feet, of them.

(L) It was hot and muggy so this fan came in handy. (R) Voting is the ticket. (Photos credit The Weekly Opine)

Back in front of the Lincoln Memorial we listened to more speeches, the most electrifying given by Atlanta’s Rev. Jamal Bryant. I happened to be standing next to Rev. Bryant shortly before he went on stage, overhearing him telling someone he recently spoke with Fulton County DA Fani Willis. I asked the reverend to tell DA Willis to keep her foot on the gas re: holding Trump accountable.

The general theme of the day was that we’ve made some progress since 1963 but much of that progress is now being threatened and undone by corrupt Republicans and a politicized Supreme Court. Good people of all persuasions need to aggressively stand our ground against MAGA Republican evil doers, including holding criminal political actors accountable by imprisoning them. We must stop greedy, wealthy bad actors from poisoning the air we breathe and the water we drink.

Most resonate was that protecting and expanding voting rights is the key that will unlock America’s full potential, allowing the dreams of 1963 to finally become reality. Whether your focus is fighting racism, saving abortion rights, civil rights, stricter gun control, LGBTQ+ rights, climate change, fair immigration policy or any other topic, protecting the right to vote in free and fair elections is paramount. Otherwise, we’re headed for authoritarianism.

Bethanny and I had a memorable day in D.C. (Photos credit The Weekly Opine)

Saturday was a great day, and we had a great vacation, as you can see from the photos.

The trip was capped off bumping into former UN Ambassador Andrew Young at the Willard Hotel Sunday morning. We chatted briefly and I thanked him for all he’s done for this country.

Mr. Andrew Young; civil rights leader, mayor, congressman, and ambassador. An American hero.