About 250 march to protest recent Macon violence

Nicholas Foster sat on the front porch of his home on the corner of Poppy Avenue and Blue Bell Street on Saturday, taking it all in.

Seven area churches led an anti-violence march Saturday from Pentecostal Temple on Anthony Road and through the Unionville neighborhood, ending with a rally at the intersection in front of Foster’s home.

Foster, 20, said that he was shocked to see approximately 250 people chanting, singing and marching through his neighborhood.

Members of a local church had driven through the area after a friend of his was shot and killed nearby a few months ago, but never something of this magnitude.

A tribute to Foster’s uncle, Kelvin Foster, is painted on the wall of a building at the intersection. “Stop the violence. Increase the peace,” the mural reads.

Kelvin Foster was killed 13 years ago. Saturday, the community was still marching against crime, a reaction to the 19 homicides that have taken place in Macon this year.

“It’ll make a little difference, but I don’t think it’ll make a real difference,” Nicholas Foster said of Saturday’s march, as he looked down at the steps.

A little difference is a start, marchers declared between gospel hymns and shouts of “United churches. We can.”

“If we can just get one person to change what they’re doing and the way they are living, we’ve done a great deed,” said Homer Jackson, a 70-year-old deacon at Unionville Baptist Church. “We will stay unified and keep doing this and keep going as long as it takes.”

Some people pushed strollers while others used walking canes for extra support, as the crowd of church members and concerned citizens marched together, some stopping to wave to and shake hands with people along the nearly three-and-a-half mile route.

Kevin Smith shot video of the march on his cell phone as he walked with fellow members of Bibb Mount Zion Baptist Church. He said he would probably post the footage on Facebook.

“We’re just here for support and for guidance,” the 27-year-old said. “I’m kind of excited that we’re trying to make a movement here, because crime is not the answer.”

The route was strategically planned with the help of Macon police Lt. Eric Woodford, said Ike Mack, pastor of Unionville Baptist Church. With Macon police cars lining the streets, Mack said they were able to go “into the heart of where we think the violence seems to be brewing.”

Gloria King was raised in that neighborhood and is now chairman of the Unionville Improvement Association.

“I just want my grandkids to be able to go outside and play,” she said. “I stay involved because this is where my parents live. I want them to be able to sit outside on the porch.”

“If we could just get our churches unified, we could get our people back together,” said King, a member of Mount Vernon Baptist Church.

Member churches of the alliance are Beulahland Bible Church, Bibb Mount Zion Baptist Church, Ebenezer Baptist Church, First Baptist Church, Macedonia Baptist Church, Pentecostal Temple and Unionville Baptist Church, but other area churches, in addition to minister Darryl Muhammad and members of the Nation of Islam, were in attendance.

“The significance of the involvement of the faith community can not be understated,” Macon Mayor Robert Reichert said at the end of the march route. “It is a crucial part of the change we’re seeking. I recall the last time we had significant social change in this country and it started in the church.”

To contact writer Caryn Grant, call 744-4347.

This story was originally published November 21, 2010 at 12:00 AM with the headline "About 250 march to protest recent Macon violence."