I’ll never give up
By Eva D. Coleman
Lifestyle & Culture Editor
Texas Metro News
“I’m glad you never gave up!” Those were the last words Icon McMillan, as I called him, sent to me when we last communicated in December 2025. I was asking him to serve as a speaker during an upcoming Martin Luther King, Jr. Scholarship Gala. That’s when I learned he was recovering from a stroke and undergoing treatment for cancer. Being the phenomenal man that he was, we were brainstorming alternatives. We both agreed on a selection that I was able to eventually locate and confirm for the event.
Our Civil Rights advocate and GIANT Ernest McMillan has now taken his rest. He died on March 28, 2026. I remember how excited he was that I shared video footage of his dearly, departed mother, Eva McMillan (another icon), of whom I shared the same first name. I recorded the interview of her several years ago along with their cousin, Julie Booker, who wanted to capture “Cousin Eva” on video.
I read Icon McMillan’s book “Standing: One Man’s Odyssey Through the Turbulent ‘60s” during my solo sabbatical in Grand Cayman. In addition to his final text message to me, I’ll also forever be inspired by the words he wrote in my book… “Best wishes for all your dedication to the truth.” I’ll never give up. Rest In Power.
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