After a successful inaugural outing in 2017, the Underground Railroad Re-Run will resume this summer.
The Underground Railroad Re-Run will traverse some of the routes that were used by escaped slaves on their way to freedom in the 19th century.
Longtime Newton County native and community organizer Walter Gardner helped organize the event last year after he participated in another bike-related effort, Run for the Wall, an annual ride made by bikers around the country to recognize the sacrifices and contributions made by veterans.
Gardner, who has been an avid motorcycle rider for 36 years, found that there was a ride that traversed the route of The Trail of Tears and honored the sacrifices and struggles of Native Americans but no similar events commemorating the Underground Railroad.
That inspired Gardner to write a poem titled “Who Will Ride for Them.” The poem ends with the passage “THIS IS THE TRAIL! We cannot put it off for another day. The trail is marked, and their blood shows us the way. Who will ride for them? I will! Will you?”
Late in 2016, Gardner decided he would answer the call expressed in the poem and formed the organization along with his daughter, Amy, and fellow board of directors members Gailya Porter, Lexie Elmore and Mack Brown.
Gardner said around 37 riders participated in last year’s trip and that he is pleased by the response the event is getting this year from around the southeast.
“It’s been great. We’re very excited, and the response has been phenomenal,” Gardner said.
Earlier this month, Gardner attended a meeting in Atlanta with another chapter there and the event has gotten financial support from BankFirst and UPS.
“My expectations were exceeded in that meeting. And as far as the local area, we are reaching out and we are getting some responses, feedback and support.”
Gardner also said that he received a call from a man in Washington D.C. who was planning a similar motorcycle trip in the Maryland that will travel into Canada. He said they plan to combined their two groups for 2019.
The three-day trip, which will be June 13-16, will take this year’s group from Jackson, through Meridian, through Alabama and eventually to the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati. This year’s trip will include new stops at two new museums in Montgomery: The Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration which explores slavery, segregation and mass incarceration; the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, which honors more than 4,000 people who were lynched between 1877 and 1950.
The group will next travel to Huntsville, Ala., to the Oakwood University campus where they will have a sponsored meal before heading to Ohio.
Gardner said that 700-mile trip won’t be able to match the exact course of the actual Underground Railroad, which crisscrossed the U.S. as former slaves were transported north, often into Canada, but that the trip is symbolic of their quest to gain freedom.
“What we wanted to do was highlight the resilience of our people who have survived and thrived in spite of great odds,” Gardner said. “We make it clear that we are not a motorcycle club, but we use the vehicle of the motorcycle run to draw attention to the historical plight that our people experienced trying to be free.”
The early deadline to register is May 30, but late registrations will be accepted on June 13 at the New Horizon Church in Jackson, which will be the launching point, and in Montgomery on June 14.
The organization is a 501 C-3 organization so any donation will be tax deductible. For more information, visit Undergroundrailroadrerun.org or contact Gardner at wgard58462@aol.com.
