CIVIL RIGHTS icon Reverend Al Sharpton told Homerton College students the key to changing the world is to “believe in yourself.”
On his second visit to the College, Reverend Sharpton said that young people can be whatever they want to be.
He said: “Don’t let anybody tell you what you can’t do. Let them see what you can do. The only thing standing in your way is you.
“I’m the Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer of the Al Sharpton fan club”, he joked. “And we meet every morning when I get up.”
He added: “You have to believe in yourself because you can be as powerful as you want to be.”
He was speaking this afternoon (26 February) in the MAB auditorium at the event organised by the Cambridge University African and Caribbean Society and the Homerton Politics Society.
Reverend Sharpton delivered his speech ahead of an address to the Cambridge Union. Tomorrow, he is due to launch the biggest community voter registration drive ever seen in Britain.
He said: “History has always been shaped by young people. They took the time to figure out what they wanted, and they changed the world.”
Reverend Sharpton also spoke about intersectionality, telling the story of how Shirley Chisholm - the first Black woman elected to US Congress - was held back in her bid for the White House by people who thought her gender was a vote loser.
He said: “You can’t fight for anyone’s rights unless you are for everyone’s rights.”
Answering questions from audience members, Reverend Sharpton said he was influenced by Reverend Dr Martin Luther King Jnr. and Malcolm X.
Dr King stood for non-violence resistance while Brother Malcolm represented Black pride. “I got to appreciate both, not pick between them, because to have both is to be whole.”
Photos: David Johnson
