HISTORY's Moment in Media: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" Speech

On August 28 1963 the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom brought attention to the United States capital where a huge range of civil rights groups including Dr Martin Luther King Jr39s Southern Christian Leadership Conference the NAACP the National Urban League the youthled Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee organized a day of rallies performances and speeches that went off without a hitch The protest was beamed into living rooms across the country driving home the need for federal civil rights legislationIts capstone was King39s quotI Have a Dreamquot speech delivered 61 years ago this monthIt wasn39t the first mass march on Washington for equality In 1941 the threat of one from the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters union resulted in President Franklin D Roosevelt issuing an executive order that created the Fair Employment Practices Commission which looked into charges that Black Americans were being systematically excluded from jobs in the rapidly growing defense industry At the 1957 Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom protesters rallied at the Lincoln Memorial to mark the third anniversary of the US Supreme Court39s ruling of Brown v Board of Education which integrated public schools And at the 1958 Youth March for Integrated Schools demonstrators called for a more effective implementation of the Brown rulingBut 1963 marked the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation Segregation disenfranchisement underemployment and unemployment were still facts of life for Black Americans Plans for the big march were underway as early as May 1962 And this time the program was also arranged with media attention in mindTelevision was still a young medium but some 91 percent of American households owned a set by 1963 according to Nielsen March leaders were determined to present a positive image Protesters were permitted to carry signs with preapproved messages and themes Organizers worked to ensure quotno negativity except around the issues they all agreed onquot as one historian put itDespite warnings from the FBI to stay away countless celebrities Black and white lent their names and influence to the cause Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee served as emcees The day opened with performances from Joan Baez and Peter Paul and Mary Lena Horne took the podium to shout one word quotFreedomquot Mahalia Jackson sang the national anthem Marchers included Nina Simone Burt Lancaster Harry Belafonte Sidney Poitier Charlton Heston Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward Judy Garland who had to stay in California for her variety show served on the planning committeequotMy talent was the weapon the power the way for me to fightquot said Sammy Davis Jr who was there quotI think it was the most American day in the history of our country save for perhaps the Battle of Bunker Hill or maybe the signing of the Declaration of IndependencequotThere were numerous speakers on the lineup that day Union leaders religious leaders and civil rights activists like Walter Reuther president of the United Auto Workers Civil rights leaders present that day included A Philip Randolph the president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters union who had threatened the 1941 march and student leader John Lewis who went on to become the legendary Georgia Congressman Rabbi Joachim Prinz president of the American Jewish Congress and Holocaust survivor spoke right before King quotA great people who had created a great civilization had become a nation of silent onlookersquot he said quotAmerica must not become a nation of onlookers America must not remain silentquotBut it was King39s oration that has gone down in history Filled with references not only to the Emancipation Proclamation but also to the Declaration of Independence the Constitution the Gettysburg Address and the Bible he masterfully moved the crowd gathered in Washington and sent a powerful message to Americans across the countryIn his speech which was more than 17 minutes long King sketched the ongoing mistreatment of the Black Americans who39d arrived in the country as enslaved people But he also pivoted forward quotWe refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankruptquot he said quotWe refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nationquotHe offered a positive vision quotNow is the time to make real the promises of democracyquot he said And then King spoke of his dream quotI have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed We hold these truths to be selfevident that all men are created equalquotThanks in no small part to King and that August march Congress went on to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 Still at that time fewer than half of all Americans held a positive view of King But by the time the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial was dedicated in August 2011 a short walk from where he delivered those famous lines 94 percent of Americans didClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageorgMyersBizNet

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE MEDIAVILLAGE CONTENT | BECOME A THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTOR

HISTORY's Moment in Media: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" Speech

Publish date

Channel

Powerful New PSAs Showcase the Mutual Rewards and Unconditional Love of Adoption from Foster Care - Ad Council InSites

More Videos:

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE MEDIAVILLAGE CONTENT | BECOME A THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTOR

HISTORY's Moment in Media: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" Speech

Enjoying This Commentary? There's More to Love

TAGS:

Powerful New PSAs Showcase the Mutual Rewards and Unconditional Love of Adoption from Foster Care - Ad Council InSites

Cookies