April 1, 2023: Deadline for the Randolph Bracy Ocoee College Scholarship Program
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ATJ quickly became an EJI Community Remembrance Partner. We educated the public about Orange County’s lynching history, collected soil on lynching sites, provided scholarships to youth in underserved high schools, and created EJI markers for lynching victims.
In Fall 2015, a diverse group of Central Florida community members organized under the name Truth and Justice Project (TJP) to bring the 1920 Ocoee Voting Day Massacre to the attention of the community. In the summer of 2019, the group reorganized under the name Alliance for Truth and Justice (ATJ).
Enlisted the support of 47 community members to request an exhibition on the Ocoee Massacre at the Orange County Regional History Center (OCRHC)
Collected soil at lynching sites in September, October, and November 2018.
Featured in four 2018 Orlando Sentinel articles by Steve Hudak: Nov 6/Election Day "Ceremony marks sacrifice of Perry, black voter rights" Local and State, Page Bl
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/orange-county/os-ne-july-perry-lynching-dirt-20181105-story.html
Engaged in five radio shows, including one with the Wise Guys and March/April 2019 shows on WMFE with members of the Memphis-based Lynching Sites Project: WMFE-Intersection (March 12, 2019; interviews with John Ashworth and Dr. Margaret Vandiver from Memphis and Joy Dickinson from TJP) and WMFE-Friends (March 26, 2019; interviews with Dr. Timothy Huebner and John Reyer from Memphis and Harry Coverston from TJP)
Coordinated EJI scholarships in the amount of $5,000 for Boone, Evans, Jones, and Ocoee high schools
Secured a commitment from the City of Ocoee to place an EJI marker in their downtown with a ceremony in November 2020 marking the 100th year anniversary of the Ocoee Massacre
Confirmed the July Perry marker unveiling date for Friday, June 21, 2019 with the City of Orlando and EJI along with a community-wide Bryan Stevenson address with final approvals in process
Presented the program "Together: Looking Back, Moving Forward" in Ocoee on November 6, 2020 complete with an interfaith service.
The Ocoee Massacre affects all of us, even a century later. Yet it is the families of the victims who have survived in the most difficult circumstances. They continue to demonstrate their resilience and exert influence through their voices and actions. ATJ is pleased to partner with these strong individuals in our collective efforts toward reconciliation.
https://alliancetruthjustice.org/ocoee-massacre/descendants/
Alliance for Truth and Justice Orange County, FL
Accomplishments as of March 2021
In Fall 2015, a diverse group of Central Florida community members organized under the name Truth and Justice Project (TJP) to bring the 1920 Ocoee Voting Day Massacre to the attention of the community. In the summer of 2019, the group reorganized under the name Alliance for Truth and Justice (ATJ).
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/orange/os-ne-july-perry-lynching-dirt-20181105-story.html
Nov 20/”Dawn of a New Day” – (Announcement: Ocoee City Hall Proclamation) – Front Page, A1
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/orange/os-ne-ocoee-massacre-proclamation-20181115-story.html
Nov 22/ “Ocoee renounces racist past, promises harmony and justice” – Local and State, B1
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/orange/os-ne-ocoee-proclamation-reaction-20181121-story.html
April 9, 2019/”Ocoee attack marker planned”—Front Page, A1
May 10, 2019/”Groveland Four defendant Samuel Shepherd, four other Central Florida victims of racial terror commemorated on new monument at national lynching memorial”—Front Page, A1