NEW YORK, March 5 (Reuters) - When the biographical

drama film "Rustin" was released in 2023, it served as a history

lesson for some and a walk down memory lane for others.

"It was a beautiful time, I felt like I was in a heavenly

choir," said Brenda Beadenkopf, whose late father, Charlie

Walker, worked with the real-life Bayard Rustin to plan the 1963

March on Washington.

Beadenkopf attended the march at age 15 and recalls singing

many songs, including the anthem of the civil rights movement,

"We Shall Overcome."

The Netflix ( NFLX )-distributed movie stars "The Color Purple" actor

Colman Domingo as Rustin and chronicles how the gay civil rights

activist planned the 1963 March on Washington with over 200,000

people in attendance to combat racism in the United States.

Domingo received a best actor Oscar nomination for his

portrayal of the late activist.

Sarah Davidson, currently an activist in Washington, D.C.,

traveled from Arkansas to attend the march at the age of 15.

The film allowed her to feel Rustin's spirit and even

understand him in a new way.

Davidson was impressed with how diverse the crowds were

after feeling that Black people were the only ones fighting for

the rights of their own communities.

"I had never seen that many people come together. I felt

that people in America really cared about me. It became very

real to me then," she said.

Similarly, Robert Avery, also 15 at the time, and his

friends hitchhiked from Alabama with the goal of joining the

march no matter what.

"Look, our plans were to get to Washington and participate

in the march. We had no other plans, we had no idea where we

were going to stay, when we were going to get there, or any of

those things," Avery said.

Despite not having a detailed plan, Avery and his friends

quickly found themselves becoming the focus of multiple

interviews about their journey.

A highlight of his venture was meeting Rustin and Dr. Martin

Luther King Jr., as Dr. King's speech resonated deeply with

Avery.

"I just felt like, wow, he's talking to me about me," Avery

said.

"I think that was the feeling I came away with, from that

march, and from that speech, that it was about me, and when I

say about me, I mean about us," he added.