This past Saturday, I was in attendance at the third annual Black History Month parade in Covington.

It was an event I had marked in my calendar for quite some time, as traversing to Covington on Saturday’s isn’t typical for me.

For those who may not know, I currently live in Monticello 30 minutes away and I typically spend my weekends in my college alma mater town, Milledgeville, which is an additional 45 minutes away. While I’ll quite often write during the weekends, I typically don’t travel in-person for work then.

But this weekend was different. This weekend was special and it was critical that I be there to witness history in motion.

And I’m so glad I made the drive, because the parade was absolutely incredible. From beginning-to-end it was captivating, it was powerful and it was moving. Kudos to everyone involved.

You see, this 22-year old, long haired hippie is a big supporter of Black History Month. It is important to realize that many pivotal moments in American history circle back into a number of stories that are so often told during the month of February.

Of course, those stories include a quantity of not-so-glamorous stories that involve the senseless discrimination of African Americans over the years. 

It’s important that I, a white man, educate myself to the best of my ability to continue to make progress from the stories that I have grown up hearing and learning about.

It is also important that I, a white man, continue to educate myself on issues that are still persisting. Because while we’ve made progress, we still have a good ways more to go.

And rather than be a part of the problem, I hope to be a part of the solution.

Being a part of the solution means showing up to events like the Black History Month parade. It also means continuing to have those difficult conversations with my friends and peers who are Black. 

It also means teaching the next generation what’s right and how everyone should be treated with dignity and respect, but also realizing that times haven’t always been that way.

That’s how I’ll continue to show support for a month that is critical to not just American history but the American future.

In the meantime, I’ll be looking forward to next February 2025 and the next Black History Month parade where I hope I can continue to see the great community that is Covington and Newton County.

Evan Newton is the news editor of The Covington News. He can be reached at enewton@covnews.com.