DETROIT (WXYZ) — If you venture into the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, you'll find a section dedicated to Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
In that section, you will also see the impact of the late Rev. Dr. Nicholas Hood Sr. who was instrumental in the civil rights movement in Detroit.
His son, Rev. Nicholas Hood III, who was only 12 years old when Dr. King spoke in Detroit on June 23, 1963, is keeping the torch burning.
7 Action News' Carolyn Clifford met up with Rev. Hood III at the famous Plymouth United Church of Christ in Detroit.
Rev. Hood III's dad, Rev. Nicholas Hood Sr. was a civil rights activist and had taken part in many marches including in the south. As a boy, preparation for the Freedom March in Detroit is seared in his memory.
"I remember the march but, I also remember the lead up to the march. My dad was one of the organizers of the march with C.L. Franklin. There were very few African American pastors who supported the march," said Nicholas Hood III. "He was used to violence. So in the lead up on the march in Detroit, our church, the children... we were trained on how to get on the ground into a fetal position with our hands over our head if we were attacked."
Civil rights activist and minister Andrew Young, who was often by Dr. King's side, was ordained by Rev. Hood Sr. who was fearful of marches in the south.
"Andrew Young was beaten unconscious in the St. Augustine, Florida march and came to Detroit to get his thoughts together," Hood III revealed.
Fortunately in Detroit, there was no violence 60 years ago.
"We're walking down Woodward Avenue to Jefferson, arm and arm, hand in hand. We we're singing the songs of the civil rights movement... 'Oh freedom, oh freedom over me. Before I be a slave, I'll be buried in my grave,'" he said.
Rev. Hood III was at his dad's side as an assistant associate minister at Plymouth until he took the helm and he had big shoes to fill.
"He's had a tremendous impact! Firefighters or police... they would thank my dad and say you made it possible for me to get hired," he said.
"There's still farther to go but, one of the things that has encouraged me was the death of George Floyd. the way young white people just joined in and said Black Lives Matter," said Hood III.
Hood III is a graduate of Cass Technical High School and earned his degree in economics from Wayne State University. He was ordained as a minister after graduating from Yale Divinity School in Connecticut and has a doctorate from Olivet College. He was also served as a member of the Detroit City Council.
He's led missions across Africa, opened a homeless shelter, has written books and started a scholarship program for college students.
