By Khalida Sarwari
The wet and cold weather did not seem to dampen the moods of any passengers aboard the 26th Annual Freedom Train as it made its way from San Jose to San Francisco this morning.
Riders on Caltrain, young and old, sang spirited songs such as “We Shall Overcome” and “Oh Freedom” in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
“I’m just trying to carry on his celebration,” Hayward resident Vertis Coilton said.
The 60-year-old said she had always wanted to ride the Freedom Train but never had the chance due to work obligations. This year was especially important, Coilton said, because it comes days before the one-year anniversary of Obama’s inauguration.
Growing up in Stockton, Coilton said, “I never thought that would happen.”
In another part of the train, boys and girls from the San Jose chapter of Jack and Jill of America clamored in excitement in between songs, trivia questions and speeches. The African-American organization is comprised of mothers who nurture future leaders by strengthening children ages 2 to 19 through programs, community service, legislative advocacy and philanthropic giving, according to its Web site.
Carl Sibley, an 11-year-old student at Woodside Priory School in Portola Valley, delivered a segment of one of King’s lesser-known speeches titled, “Loving Your Enemies.”
His mother Carol Somersille said it’s important for her children to be in the company of other like-minded children and that every year they get something out of riding the Freedom Train.
“This is an opportunity for me to refresh our history, remember the incredible intellect and strength of our leaders, and let my children know who came before them that made it possible for them to have the opportunities they have,” Somersille said.
Aleida Perez, of Alameda, brought her 15-month-old daughter and 6-year-old son for the family’s first time riding the Freedom Train.
“We wanted our children to have a sense of community, to be proud of who they are, to have a sense of value,” Perez said.
Perez said her son Nathaniel remarked to her once that if it weren’t for King, they would not have been a family, referring to the different races of his parents.
She said she hoped to make the Freedom train ride a family tradition.
The riders showed up this morning despite the fact that the San Jose/Silicon Valley chapter of the NAACP had withdrawn its support of the Freedom Train after the San Jose Police Officers Association donated money to the event. The Rev. Jethroe Moore, president of the chapter, has stated that the organization objects to the way the San Jose Police Department treats minority residents.
“They’ve done the community wrong,” Moore said today, mentioning the cases of Daniel Pham, a mentally ill man who was shot and killed by police in May as he held a knife and San Jose State University student Phuong Quang Ho, who was injured in a confrontation with police in September. Both incidents angered the local Vietnamese-American community.
Prior to the train’s departure this morning, a representative from the Martin Luther King Jr. Association of Santa Clara Valley, an interfaith organization that hosted the event, passed out a news release to reporters alluding to the rift.
In the news release, the MLK Jr. Association said, “The claims that are being made that the police are using the MLK Board to suppress accusations of racism against the San Jose Police Department are untrue … The MLK Association has never asked for or accepted financial assistance from the San Jose Police Department.”
The association said it has, however, accepted donations from the San Jose Police Association and other police unions, as is common practice among multicultural groups.