Civil Rights Ceremonies

Images depict significant ceremonies honoring a historic church associated with the civil rights movement, featuring speakers and an engaged audience.

Church singing, Le Chesnay, Yvelines, France, Europe

Reverend Laurie Graber and her husband Tom Graber give a presentation May 26, 2022, during the 2022 Memorial Day Prayer Luncheon at Fort McCoy, Wis. Both Grabers discussed their ministry and the importance of Memorial Day. The Grabers were among several participants in the luncheon that included special guest speakers, special prayers provided by other clergy, and music to honor fallen veterans for Memorial Day. Nearly three dozen community members attended the event that also included a free lunch. The event was organized by the Fort McCoy Religious Support Office.

William Franklin Graham Jr. (November 7, 1918 - February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist, a prominent evangelical Christian figure, and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. One of his biographers has placed him "among the most influential Christian leaders" of the 20th century.

Praying woman, Francistown, Botswana, Africa

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, far left, with Secretary Gale Norton and Arthur Price, Jr., Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, at ceremonies designating the Church, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as National Historic Landmark

Living Legacy Awards event, recognizing contributions to Native American arts promotion, at Department of Interior headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Swearing-in ceremony for Ross Owen Swimmer, right, as the Special Trustee for American Indians. Swimmer, former Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, is the first American Indian to hold the Trustee position since the post was created in the Department of Interior in 1994

Senior woman selling books to visitors; Cyunsi Buddhist Nunnery; commerce; religion; Chongqing, China, Asia; 041603

Pastor preaching from pulpit

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at ceremonies designating the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as a National Historic Landmark

YOKOSUKA, Japan (Dec. 4, 2022) - Cmdr. David Kim, command chaplain, Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka (CFAY), welcomes the congregation to the 39th annual International Christmas Celebration held at CFAY's Chapel of Hope. The celebration was open to all denominations to celebrate the holiday season with fellowship, food, and a Sunday service. For more than 75 years, CFAY has provided, maintained, and operated base facilities and services in support of the U.S. 7th Fleet's forward-deployed naval forces, tenant commands, and thousands of military and civilian personnel and their families.

A Church Choir

Fort McCoy Garrison Chaplain (Maj.) Robert Rand provides the invocation during the 2022 Memorial Day Prayer Luncheon on May 26, 2022, at McCoys Community Center at Fort McCoy, Wis. Reverend Laurie Graber and her husband Tom Graber gave a presentation as guest speakers for the event. Both Grabers discussed their ministry and the importance of Memorial Day. Were several participants in the luncheon that included special guest speakers, special prayers provided by clergy, and music to honor fallen veterans for Memorial Day. Nearly three dozen community members attended the event that also included a free lunch. The event was organized by the Fort McCoy Religious Support Office.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Robert Bohnsack, 30th Chaplain Corps chaplain, embraces Robert Goff, American lawyer, speaker and author, in a hug during a Chapel event at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., Feb. 15, 2024. The Base Chapel hosted the event to bring the Team V community together. Space Force

Colorado Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, honoree, speaking at the Living Legacy Awards event, recognizing contributions to Native American arts promotion, at Department of Interior headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Department wide Interfaith Memorial Service in Dean Acheson Auditorium

Stained glass window of Nelson Mandela, Regina Mundi Catholic Church (scene of Soweto uprising), Soweto, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at ceremony, at Old North Church in Boston, Massachusetts, marking the announcement of a Save America's Treasures Historic Preservation grant for the Church

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at Touro Synagogue, Newport, Rhode Island, announcing a Save America's Treasures program grant for the Synagogue, the nation's oldest

Japan, Tokyo, Yasukuni Shrine, Ceremonial Sumo Tournament

Police Chaplain Jef Skinner says a special prayer for police and firefighters during the 2022 Memorial Day Prayer Luncheon on May 26, 2022, at McCoys Community Center at Fort McCoy, Wis. Reverend Laurie Graber and her husband Tom Graber gave a presentation as guest speakers for the event. Both Grabers discussed their ministry and the importance of Memorial Day. Were several participants in the luncheon that included special guest speakers, special prayers provided by clergy, and music to honor fallen veterans for Memorial Day. Nearly three dozen community members attended the event that also included a free lunch. The event was organized by the Fort McCoy Religious Support Office.

Choir, worship, Catedral Evangelica de Chile, Pentecostal Church, Santiago de Chile, Chile, South America

Pigsah Baptist Church

Recruits take the Naturalization Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America during a naturalization ceremony inside the Recruit Memorial Chapel at Recruit Training Command (RTC). More than 40,000 recruits train annually at the Navy's only boot camp.

Sgt. Antoinette Wolliston with the Fort McCoy Religious Support Office provided narration during the 2022 Memorial Day Prayer Luncheon on May 26, 2022, at McCoys Community Center at Fort McCoy, Wis. Reverend Laurie Graber and her husband Tom Graber gave a presentation as guest speakers for the event. Both Grabers discussed their ministry and the importance of Memorial Day. Were several participants in the luncheon that included special guest speakers, special prayers provided by clergy, and music to honor fallen veterans for Memorial Day. Nearly three dozen community members attended the event that also included a free lunch. The event was organized by the Fort McCoy Religious Support Office.

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at Touro Synagogue, Newport, Rhode Island, announcing a Save America's Treasures program grant for the Synagogue, the nation's oldest

Reverend Laurie Graber and her husband Tom Graber give a presentation May 26, 2022, during the 2022 Memorial Day Prayer Luncheon at Fort McCoy, Wis. Both Grabers discussed their ministry and the importance of Memorial Day. The Grabers were among several participants in the luncheon that included special guest speakers, special prayers provided by other clergy, and music to honor fallen veterans for Memorial Day. Nearly three dozen community members attended the event that also included a free lunch. The event was organized by the Fort McCoy Religious Support Office.

Maundy Thursday table in church, Paris, France, Europe

Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo views the Berner M�nster, the Cathedral of Bern, during his tour of Old City Bern UNESCO World Heritage Site in Bern, Switzerland, on June 1, 2019.

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, far left, with Secretary Gale Norton and Arthur Price, Jr., Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, at ceremonies designating the Church, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as National Historic Landmark

Office of the Secretary - Secretary Alexis Herman at National Cathedral, Washington, DC

Senior man, sitting and church for religion, faith or pray at cathedral or holy grounds in Jesus Christ. Mature or religious male person looking up in sanctuary for salvation, forgiveness or worship

Gospel Choir

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, far left, with Secretary Gale Norton and Arthur Price, Jr., Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, at ceremonies designating the Church, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as National Historic Landmark

Caucasian parents having baby baptized in church

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, far left, with Secretary Gale Norton and Arthur Price, Jr., Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, at ceremonies designating the Church, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as National Historic Landmark

Pastor speaks with a couple in a church; Lincoln, Nebraska, United States of America

Priest standing next to pews

Pastor preaching from the pulpit

Gospel Choir

NASA Kennedy Space Center Director Robert Cabana speaks at the funeral service for former NASA astronaut Captain Bruce McCandless II, USN (Ret.), Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018 at the United States Naval Academy Chapel in Annapolis, Maryland.

Detroit, Michigan USA, 15 January 2024, Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers union, was a featured speaker at the Martin Luther King Day rally for jobs, peace and justice at St. Matthew's & St. Joseph's Episcopal Church

A member of the Wisconsin Dells Singers of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin performs during the 2022 Fort McCoy Native American Heritage Month Observance in McCoy's Community Center at Fort McCoy, Wis. The Singers performed traditional Native music and dances in their regalia for dozens of Fort McCoy community members. November is Native American Heritage Month, or as it is commonly referred to, American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month. The month is a time to celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native people.

Pastors and members converse following Sunday morning worship. (MR)

Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo delivers remarks at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, on September 20, 2020.

Former NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden speaks at the funeral service for former NASA astronaut Captain Bruce McCandless II, USN (Ret.), Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018 at the United States Naval Academy Chapel in Annapolis, Maryland.

Pastor preaches from the pulpit

Deacon Chris D. Romero, a U.S. Navy Veteran, provides some remarks during an unveiling and dedication of a Virginia Historical Marker honoring Filipino Sailors in the U.S. Navy on May 28, 2022. The event occurred at the Philippine Cultural Center of Virginia in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Romero was the first Filipino-American deacon to be ordained in the Catholic Diocese serving at St. Matthew Catholic Church in Virginia Beach, and currently works as a chaplain for hospice patients. He is also a member of the Philippine Cultural Center of Virginias board of trustees.

Dedication of new memorial at the African Burial Ground National Monument in New York City, New York, with keynote address by Secretary Dirk Kempthorne and presentations by dignitaries including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, New York Senator Charles Schumer, General Services Administrator Lurita Doan, National Park Service Deputy Director for Operations Dan Wenk, African Burial Ground Superintendent Tara Morrison, New York Public Library Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture Director Howard Dodson, poet and novelist Maya Angelou, and actors Sidney Poitier and Avery Brooks. The permanent memorial, constructed to honor the memories of the free and enslaved Africans bured at the original seven-acre Lower Manhattan site in the 17th and 18th Centuries, was opened to the public for the first time.

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, far left, with Secretary Gale Norton and Arthur Price, Jr., Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, at ceremonies designating the Church, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as National Historic Landmark

Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo delivers remarks at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, on September 20, 2020.

FEMA staff addresses flood survivors during the town hall meeting inside of the St. Amant Church in Ascension Parish, La on Saturday, August 20, 2016.. Louisiana Severe Storms and Flooding. Photographs Relating to Disasters and Emergency Management Programs, Activities, and Officials

President Ronald Reagan gives graduation address to the graduating class of Tuskegee University their friends and families during ceremonies held at the university. Exact Date Shot Unknown. Country: Unknown

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Rachidou Moussa, an automotive maintenance technician with 3rd Maintenance Battalion, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, bows his head for the invocation during a naturalization ceremony hosted at the Chapel on Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan, Nov. 22, 2022. A total of 24 service members and Status of Forces Agreement personnel from 19 countries swore the Oath of Allegiance and received their naturalization certificates to become U.S. citizens. Naturalization is the process by which U.S. citizenship is granted to a foreign citizen after he or she fulfills the requirements to become a citizen established by Congress in the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.

Audience gathered in historic St. Thomas Church, Leipzig, Germany for concert by its famed Boys Choir which dates to 1212.

All nine candles are lit representing each of the nine enlisted ranks in the United States Air Force during Hill Air Force Base's Chief Induction Ceremony held Mar. 31, 2023, in Ogden, Utah. Only 1% of the entire enlisted force will earn the rank of chief.

Cynthia C. Romero, MD, FAACP, Chairman of the Council of United Filipino Organizations of Tidewater (CUFOT), provides some remarks during an unveiling and dedication of a Virginia Historical Marker honoring Filipino Sailors in the U.S. Navy on May 28, 2022. The event occurred at the Philippine Cultural Center of Virginia in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Romero previously served as Virginias State Health Commissioner, and is the Director of the M. Foscue Brock Institute for Community and Global Health at Eastern Virginia Medical School.

Bokeelia, FL, USA--November 2, 2022-Local, State and Federal officials meet with local residents during a town hall meeting to offer information about programs and assistance and to answer questions about their concerns. The meeting was held at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church.Jocelyn Augustino/FEMA

USA, California, Mixed ethnic teen choir singing in church.

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at Touro Synagogue, Newport, Rhode Island, announcing a Save America's Treasures program grant for the Synagogue, the nation's oldest

Gospel Choir and Minister

Events marking the debut of the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial traveling exhibit, Corps of Discovery II, at Monticello, Virginia

Devotees raise their pets to receive holy water blessings during a mass to bless pets and animals as part of 'World Animal Day' at Iglesia de San Francisco in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on October 9, 2025.

Minister in Front of Gospel Choir

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, far left, with Secretary Gale Norton and Arthur Price, Jr., Pastor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, Birmingham, Alabama, at ceremonies designating the Church, key civil rights movement meeting place and site of 1963 bombing, as National Historic Landmark

060523-N-3532C-270. Base: Manila Country: Philippines (PHL)

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at the ground blessing ceremony for a new, $38 million classroom and dormitory complex at the Santa Fe Indian School, Santa Fe, New Mexico. The school was one of several stops on the Secretary's New Mexico visit highlighting federal support for American Indian schools

Office of the Secretary - Secretary Alexis Herman at National Cathedral, Washington, DC

Col. Ryan Hanson, garrison commander, holds a candle during the Domestic Violence Awareness Month candlelight vigil held Oct. 6, at the Main Post Chapel.

young arabian muslim man in traditional clothes praying on the carpet in front of pink wall before iftar dinner during a ramadan feast at home

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden speaks and delivers greetings from President Obama at the 44th annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Service on Monday, Jan. 16, 2012 at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.

Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, Chaplain Lt. Col. Matthew Boarts gives the invocation at the Air Force Family Forever & Gold Star Family 5K run at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia, April 18, 2022. Boarts prayed for the 300 plus participants and gave thanks to those who came out to support the annual AFFF & Gold Star Families event.

Gospel Choir and Minister

Cherokee Hills Byway - Cherokee Nation Youth Choir. The Cherokee Nation Youth Choir performs for an audience. They are all dressed in the traditional clothing-- brightly colored, distinctly designed tear dresses for the girls, various colors of ribbon shirts for the boys, and moccasins for everyone. All of their songs are performed in the Cherokee language. Location: Cherokee Hills, Oklahoma

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Inside the Apollo/Saturn V Center at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, the Bethune-Cookman Choir performs prior to the induction ceremony of five space program heroes into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. New inductees are Richard O. Covey, commander of the Hubble Space Telescope repair mission; Norman E. Thagard, the first American to occupy Russias Mir space station; the late Francis R. "Dick" Scobee, commander of the ill-fated 1986 Challenger mission; Kathryn D. Sullivan, the first American woman to walk in space; and Frederick D. Gregory, the first African-American to command a space mission and the current NASA deputy administrator. The U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame opened in 1990 to provide a place where space travelers could be remembered for their participation and accomplishments in the U.S. space program. To be eligible for induction, an individual must have been a U.S. citizen, a NASA astronaut, and out of the active astronaut corps at

Secretary Gale Norton speaking at ceremony, at Old North Church in Boston, Massachusetts, marking the announcement of a Save America's Treasures Historic Preservation grant for the Church

Seychelles, Baie Lazare, Young Girls Attending First Communion.

Manahawkin, New Jersey, Donated food and cleaning supplies for people displaced by Hurricane Sandy at King of Kings Church. The church filled its sanctuary with food and its gym with clothing for storm victims.

A small congregation stands in a garden in the backyard of a rural church.

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