The Room I Almost Didn’t Walk Into

Walking into a room full of people I don’t know has never been my thing. I’m almost 58, and yes, I can already hear someone saying, “Get over it.” Easier said than done. LOL.

But today, I went anyway. I showed up for the street dedication honoring Al Raby, and I’m glad I did.

I’ve been friends with his daughter Kathy for decades—she says 26 years, I say 30. What matters is that she and her daughters are genuinely good people, and I’ve always treasured my friendship with them.

For years, I knew her father was someone important, but I didn’t fully understand the history behind his name. That changed over the past year as I’ve been helping the Al Raby Foundation with its website and ideas for a mobile app. In the process, I finally learned about the man himself.

And let me tell you: Al Raby deserves far more recognition than he gets.

Who Al Raby Was — and Why His Legacy Matters

Al Raby was a civil rights organizer, political campaigner, activist, and educator. He was also a grade‑school dropout who taught himself to read as a teenager and later graduated from Chicago Teachers College.

As a Chicago Public Schools teacher at Hess Upper Grade Center, he became a leader in the fight to desegregate Chicago’s schools and housing. He helped establish the Coordinating Council of Community Organizations (CCCO) and helped organize the 1963 Chicago Public Schools boycott, when an estimated 200,000–250,000 students stayed home in protest.

Most people know Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Far fewer know that Al Raby helped bring King to Chicago and co‑chaired the Chicago Freedom Movement with him in 1966.

Raby negotiated with Mayor Richard J. Daley on the historic Summit Agreement on open housing. He led the Gage Park marches, served as a delegate to the 1969 Illinois Constitutional Convention, directed the Peace Corps in Ghana, and managed Harold Washington’s campaign to become Chicago’s first Black mayor in 1983.

Chicago already has Al Raby High School. And now, as of today, it also has Al Raby Way.

Showing Up Anyway

Today’s ceremony honored him with the honorary dedication of the 6300 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue. The program included a proclamation and an unveiling at The Grand Ballroom.

And yes, I was nervous walking in. As always.

But then something happened: I enjoyed myself.

The mayor—whom I cannot stand, but that’s another story—gave a speech that didn’t rub me the wrong way. A former governor spoke, too. It was a fitting tribute.

I also got to see Cassandra, the wife of my late friend Lee, along with Sadar (Lee’s good friend and fellow DJ) and David (Lee’s son). And I met new people. Yes, Derrick’s anti‑social ass met some genuinely nice folks and enjoyed it.

I went to support my friend and honor her father. I left grateful that I hadn’t talked myself out of going.

That’s what I want to remember the next time I’m standing outside a room, looking for a reason not to walk in.

The nerves were real. So were the friendships, conversations, and joy I would have missed.

Sometimes the room you don’t want to walk into is exactly where you need to be.