Thread by @MGMAdvertiser

To shape a better future, we must look to the past.

Hear from resilient community leaders across 9 cities who endured racism, discrimination and other systematic issues to fight for a better life for their generation and the ones that followed. THREAD: montgomeryadvertiser.com/in-depth/news/…

Civil rights attorney Fred Gray began his decades-long career with a simple declaration: “destroy everything segregated.” He kept his promise. Read more about his legacy here: bit.ly/32u0TZ4 (2/10)

In 60 years, Katie Snuggs went from fighting for the right to eat at the front of a segregated Asheboro restaurant to becoming the first Black woman elected to City Council.

Here’s how she became the trailblazer she is today: bit.ly/33zjSRg #BLM #BlackLivesMatter (3/10)

Racial disparities in criminal justice, health care and other facets of life create serious disadvantages for the Black community.

Meet Rev. Adrian Brooks (@pastoramb), an Evansville pastor creating opportunities for people in the city. bit.ly/3hv3Fli #BLM (4/10)

Meet Wayne Riley, an activist who is pushing for unity and compassion in a small Kentucky town known for its history of terrorizing Black people to push them out of the community. bit.ly/2ZDImI8 #BLM #CorbinKentucky #SundownTown (5/10)

AJ McCleod and other activists are on a mission to end #gunviolence in #Lubbock. Their game plan? Mentor vulnerable young people. Read the story by @AJ_GabeMonte here: bit.ly/3mnAcxf (6/10)

Tammy Jackson Moore - known as Ms. Tammy to some - has spent years doing advocacy work in Palm Beach County. Here’s what motivates her to serve the community’s less fortunate. bit.ly/2ZHkXFM (7/10)

Evonia Pollard believes in recognizing marginalized voices. For her, that means Black transgendered and queer people. She’s leading the way to make their voices heard in Savannah, starting with her own. bit.ly/3knMOlZ (8/10)

Patrick Johnson views racism as a cancer: unseen save for those it affects. Over the last 20 years, he's worked with both law enforcement and citizens to break down their understanding of systemic racism. bit.ly/35K4hku (9/10)

As an activist in the 1960s, Bertha Todd saw conflicts that were almost exclusively Black vs. white. Today, Black and white people march shoulder-to-shoulder in Wilmington. Here's her advice for the next generation: bit.ly/3kmpDbI (10/10)