Cellphone video of Councilwoman Sharon Middleton at 300 Men March rally: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A digital video of Councilwoman Sharon Middleton speaking at a 300 Men March rally in Baltimore, Maryland. The video was captured using a cellphone and has color and sound. The footage opens with 300 Men March leader Munir Bahar standing in front of a group of people. He, like many of the individuals in the crowd, wears a black T-shirt with [300 MEN MARCH] printed on the front in large white letters. On the back of the shirts, [we must /stop killing / each other] is printed in lowercase white letters. Mr. Bahar also wears a white long-sleeve Under Armor shirt underneath his 300 Men March shirt and a black baseball cap. After futilely asking some of the individuals immediately surrounding him for another megaphone, he holds up his megaphone and says to the crowd, "Can you all hear me?...This is as loud as it gets." He then introduces the Councilwoman for the neighborhood, Sharon Green Middleton, who joins him on the platform; the crowd applauds upon her arrival.

Councilwoman Middleton then reports to the group that the past few weeks have been a learning lesson and that the moment shows how they can come together as a group. She thanks the 300 Men March and the crowd applauds. She says they have been sending a strong message and that “we have to stop killing each other.” As she says this, the camera pans 360 degrees, revealing members of the audience applauding and holding up signs that read [we must / stop killing / each other]. She implores men to become involved; thanks her "colleague Brandon Scott," to which the crowd applauds and one person can be overheard saying “that young black guy, though;” and tells the crowd that they will be the example and this day will mark the start of it. Toward the end of the speech, she mentions that they will give out prayers to the Freddie Gray family and that she feels God on the block with them.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: May 1, 2015
• Recorded by: Aaron Bryant, American
• Subject of: 300 Men March, American, founded 2013
• Subject of: Sharon Green Middleton, American, born 1954
• Subject of: Munir Bahar, American
• Subject of: Freddie Gray, American, 1990 - 2015
• Subject of: Unidentified Man or Men
• Subject of: Unidentified Woman or Women
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Type: sound films
• Type: color films (visual works)
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration: 00:04:18
• Dimensions: Total: 529 MB
• Place captured: Baltimore, Maryland, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Justice
• Topic: Police brutality
• Topic: Politics
• Topic: Resistance
• Topic: Social reform
• Object number: 2021.76.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Aaron Bryant
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Aaron Bryant Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.