Bishop William Barber announces “This Is Our Selma,” a memorial march from Wilson to Raleigh to be held in mid-February. (Photo by Clayton Henkel/NC Newsline)
“We’ve got to turn this around.”
Bishop William J. Barber II choked back emotion as he reflected on Wednesday’s untimely death of Renee Nicole Good, the 37-year-old mother who was fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis.
“My God, they’re killing mothers. And the grossest image that I’ve seen in a long time — you have an [airbag] covered with blood and baby dolls in the dashboard,” said Barber in recalling his reaction to seeing the videos of Good’s shooting which have been widely circulated on social media.
The crashed SUV after an ICE agent shot the driver through the window on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The driver died at the scene, according to the Department of Homeland Security. (Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer)“The question in this moment is what kind of systems, what kind of attitudes create the atmosphere that can gin somebody up to the point that they would shoot a woman, a mother, at point blank range?” Barber asked.
The Department of Homeland Security and President Donald Trump maintain the ICE agent was acting in “self-defense.”
Barber did not see it that way.
“Because the spirit of hate has been unleashed. If it’s not turned around, it could destroy us all,” he warned.
Barber’s remarks came as a coalition of North Carolina religious and advocacy organizations held a Friday press conference to announce “This Is Our Selma,” a memorial march from Wilson to Raleigh in mid-February.
Barber said North Carolinians are tired of hate and tired of regressive policies that threaten Medicaid, restrict voting rights and instill fear in immigrant communities.
The coalition includes Repairers of the Breach, Indivisible, the North Carolina Council of Churches, the North Carolina Poor People’s Campaign and the Union of Southern Service Workers.
Organizers say the need for a massive march became even more apparent after legislative leaders decided last fall to redraw North Carolina’s congressional districts at the request of President Donald Trump to favor Republicans in the U.S. House ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Critics have argued the new map undermines the voting power of the state’s rural Black voters in the 1st congressional district, which has been represented by Black lawmakers for decades.
The 1st district seat, currently held by U.S. Rep. Don Davis, was North Carolina’s only competitive House seat. The Cook Political Report notes that race is no longer a toss-up. The seat leans Republican.
“That’s the only reason people do all this tricky redistricting and try to block voting rights is because they have considered that they cannot win in a fair fight,” said Barber, calling the new map blatant and racist.
Rev. Dr. Hanna Broome, director of religious affairs for Repairers of the Breach and president of the NC Council of Churches, said the march from Wilson to Raleigh is not only a commemoration of a historic moment, but a continuation.
“156 years after the ratification of the 15th Amendment, we are still pressing forward toward the promise of justice and democracy for all people,” Broome said.
Dennis Gaddy, executive director of the North Carolina Community Success Initiative, said he was moved by a sign in the chapel that read, “We won’t be diluted, we won’t be dismissed.” Gaddy said his nonprofit represents thousands of people who have at one time or another found themselves entangled with the criminal justice system and are turning their lives around.
“And there are people now who are eligible to vote that don’t know it, and they need to be empowered to go to the polls,” Gaddy said. “That’s one of the things we’ll be doing along this movement.”
In-person, early voting for the March 2026 primaries begins Feb. 12, and the group hopes the march will put a spotlight on that opportunity to be heard.
Barber encouraged the group to not speak out against the policies or an administration they oppose, but to speak out boldly in support of policies they would love to see pass including healthcare for all, fully funded public education, and living wages.
“All over the nation, people of goodwill must decide now to stand and push for democracy and a society worth having and then love forward to get it.”
The Moral March gets underway Feb. 11 at Saint James Christian Church in Wilson and culminates Feb. 14 with a Time to Love Forward mobilization and march in downtown Raleigh.
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