Civil rights leader Martin Luther King
in Montgomery, Alabama, April 29, 1966.
(Photo: JRT / AP)

This story has been posted here annually on MLK, Jr. Day since 2009.

THIS IS 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THIS WEEKEND THE NATION PAUSES TO REMEMBER THE LEGACY OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

“Martin Luther King, Jr. (January 15, 1929 April 4, 1968) was an American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States, and he has become a human rights icon: King is recognized as a martyr by two Christian churches. A Baptist minister, King became a civil rights activist early in his career. He led the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president. King’s efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. There, he raised public consciousness of the civil rights movement and established himself as one of the greatest orators in U.S. history.

In 1964, King became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other non-violent means. By the time of his death in 1968, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and opposing the Vietnam War, both from a religious perspective. King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was established as a U.S. national holiday in 1986,” quoting Wikipedia.


– The Seattle Times has a fabulous expose on the civil rights giant.
Click here

– The full version of Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech.
August 28, 1963, posted on YouTube.
Click here.


– UPDATE: For the 2016 King Holiday:
* “Martin Luther King Jr.’s Living Legacy”
“Discover how the American hero is still shaping lives around the world”
From AARP.
Read more


* “MLK Day: Why on Monday and what was Stevie Wonder’s role?”
“Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is observed on the third Monday in January every year, and while many people know the day is in recognition of King’s birthday, not many are familiar with how the day became a holiday. Like, why do we celebrate it on a Monday and what was Stevie Wonder’s role.”
By Mary Bowerman, USA TODAY Network.
Read more


* THIS-TV airing today the acclaimed 1978 TV Mini-Series “KING”
“Nominated for nine Emmy Awards, this ‘astute and compelling’ (Variety) biography based on the remarkable life of Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., takes an intimate look at one of the world’s most public heroes during one of the most tumultuous times in American history. Starring Paul Winfield, Cicely Tyson and Ossie Davis, King is a riveting tale that appropriately honors a true legend. In 1950s/60s America, the civil rights movement found its leader in a Southern Baptist minister. Using lyrical eloquence, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., motivated masses of people – black and white – to demand equality by way of nonviolent protest. But in spite of his peaceful agenda, Dr. King was often the target of terrible violence. He was never swayed from his path, however; for by the time he was assassinated in 1968, Dr. King had already defined a dream that would change a nation forever,” quoting THIS-TV.
Read more and check showtimes.


* “10 most tweeted Martin Luther King Jr. quotes”
By Mary Bowerman, USA TODAY Network.
Read more



Credit: Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader,
January 20, 2014