Dr. Michael Meyers, a Lonaconing native, an Army veteran and a graduate of the University of Maryland Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, had a family practice on Main Street in Westminster from December 1959 until his retirement in 2003.
Meyers, who recalls casting his first presidential ballot for Harry Truman, participated in the original March on Washington nearly six decades ago to advocate for African Americans' civil and economic rights, held in the nation’s capital on Aug. 28, 1963.
The Times recently caught up with Meyers to discuss his career in Carroll County, his memories of the march and civil rights then and now.
Q: Why did you choose to open your dental practice in Westminster?
A: My wife and I drove to look at the Westminster area on a Sunday evening. We were impressed with the quiet rural setting and thought it would be nice place to raise our children.
Q: What stands out most when you look back on a long and successful career?
A: I was really impressed with the openness and friendliness of the Carroll County people.
Q: How have you stayed busy in retirement and do you still live in the area?
A: My current primary residence is in Westminster. But earlier in my retirement, we spent a lot of time at our second home on Tilghman Island on the eastern shore.
Q: I understand you attended the March on Washington. Why did you decide to participate?
A: Several friends and I were talking about attending the march in Washington. We hadn’t made any definite decision until the Archbishop of Baltimore encouraged Catholics in his diocese to attend the march. A group of friends from St. John’s Church made the decision to attend the march. The others, I remember, were Charles and Margaret Fisher, Tim and Marion Dunne and Nellie Judge. [We] all stayed very close after the march. Charles and Margaret Fisher became our lifelong friends. We met because of a family connection, but the march bonded us more.
Q: What are your memories from that day?
A: Our small group boarded the bus already filled with African Americans, many of them very excited young teens. The bus quieted as we neared Washington. When our bus arrived at the mall, we were startled at the large number of people, Black and white, already there. As we slowly walked around the mall, it was moving to hear groups of young people singing “We Shall Overcome.” When Marian Anderson sang, “My Country 'Tis of Thee,” my eyes filled with tears.
The vast crowd hushed into complete silence when Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. The whole experience was overwhelming. On the bus ride back to Westminster, it was very quiet.
Q: Were you aware of the significance of the march at the time?
A: Not really. I thought “this is great,” but I also thought, “I don’t know how much significance it has.” I just wasn’t sure. In later years I realized it was a very big march. At that time, we just really thought we were going over to march and make a point. We didn’t realize the significance until later.
Q: What do you think was accomplished by the march?
A: I think it opened the white population of this country to the racial problem. We became aware of the terrible problems African Americans faced in their daily lives. I think it was the beginning of that movement.
Q: Did you remain politically active after the march?
A: I wasn’t really active until after the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And then after that I was angry.
Q: Did you ever worry your views could negatively impact your practice?
Not really, although one patient said he was very disappointed, and that if he ever saw an African American in my office, he would never come back. To be honest, I never really liked this man, so I was hoping he would come when there was an African American in the office, but it never happened.
Q: The 57th anniversary of the March on Washington was celebrated with another march recently. What does it say that so many issues remain more than half a century later.
A: It wasn’t until these recent deaths of Black men and women that a rainbow coalition of people have joined these protests. The march all those years ago unsettled some of the white population, but not enough to make them actively try to solve this problem. It wasn’t until the recent uprising of all kinds of communities in support of Black men and women killed by police that this has become a much broader concern.