Wednesday, July 30, marked the 101st anniversary of the birth of the Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian, the civil rights leader who grew up in Macomb.
“One of America’s greatest citizens was from right here,” said Byron Oden-Shabazz, founder and president of the C.T. Vivian Foundation. “Who was a better citizen of Macomb than C.T. Vivian?”
Oden-Shabazz said the foundation plans to begin a capital campaign to pay for construction of a cultural center at the site of Vivian’s boyhood home on East Adams Street. He estimated the project will cost $3 million.
The site is currently an empty lot, though a marker notes its historical significance.
Oden-Shabazz acknowledged the project is taking longer than hoped, but said he’s never done anything like this before.
“It was all a learning stage for me. It was all new learning, and it was finding new people to sit on a board who have resources,” he said.
He credited City Administrator Scott Coker and Mayor Mike Inman with helping him along the way.
Oden-Shabazz said the idea behind the center is to continue Vivian’s legacy.
“How do we build something that people can use and it fits the bill of educating people, living up to his legacy? He was really about giving and serving,” Oden-Shabazz said.
He envisions the building will include a foyer with a bust of Vivian, a big lecture hall in the center, and a C.T. Vivian museum. The building would also include offices, a commercial kitchen, and a small recording studio.
He plans to apply to have the site added to the United States Civil Rights Trail.
He believes it will take at least three years to get the center built.
Oden-Shabazz said he’s inspired to lead the charge to build the center because the civil rights leader had a profound impact on his life.
“He totally changed the way I thought about love as a man, love as a citizen. Love is an action word, and it’s not always easy. He was punished for practicing that,” Oden-Shabazz said.
He hopes people mark Vivian’s birthday by reading something written by the civil rights leader or watching an interview of him.
Oden-Shabazz is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, as was Vivian. Members of the organization will be on hand to place a new plaque next to the mural of Vivian along East Carroll Street in downtown Macomb. The ceremony will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 1.
Afterward, they will give away book bags to students.
Cordy Tindell Vivian was born in Missouri in 1924. His family moved to Macomb in 1930. He graduated from Macomb High School and attended Western Illinois University before heading to Peoria, where he participated in his first demonstration in 1947.
He founded the C.T. Vivian Leadership Institute in Atlanta, Ga., in 2008 to train and educate the next generation of grassroots activists.
President Barack Obama awarded Vivian the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013.
Vivian passed away on July 17, 2020, in Atlanta.
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