Martin Luther King Jr. - Assassinated April 4, 1968

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 15, 1929 – April 4, l968

Place of birth: Atlanta, Georgia. His grandfather began the family's long tenure as pastors of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, serving from 1914 to 1931; his father also served, and from 1960 until his death Martin Luther acted as co-pastor.

While in college in Boston he met and married Coretta Scott. Two sons and two daughters were born.

Movement: African-American Civil Rights Movement and Peace movement.

Major organizations: President of Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) 1957

Notable prizes: Nobel Peace Prize (1964)

Presidential Medal of Freedom (1977, posthumous)

Congressional Gold Medal (2004, posthumous)

Alma mater: Morehouse College, Crozer Theological Seminary,Boston University

Religion: Baptist

Influences: Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, Benjamin Mays, Hosea Williams, Rosa Parks, Bayard Rustin, Henry David Thoreau, Howard Thurman, Leo Tolstoy.

In 1954, Martin Luther King became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. 


At the age of thirty-five, Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. When notified of his selection, he announced that he would turn over the prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the civil rights movement.


Dr. King's April 4, 1967 speech "A Time to Break Silence: Declaration of Independence from the Vietnam War" was profound and a stark warning against endless war.
He said “I am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values. We must rapidly begin the shift from a 'thing-oriented' society to a 'person-oriented' society. When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, materialism and militarism are incapable of being conquered. .... 
A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death." (MLK, April 4, 1967)

The speech was delivered in the Riverside Church in New York City, to the clergy and laymen concerned about Viet Nam.

On the evening of April 4, 1968, while standing on the balcony of his motel room
in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was to lead a protest march in sympathy with striking garbage workers of that city, he was assassinated. He was killed exactly one year to the day after his greatest speech – against the War on Viet Nam. (in case one misses the symbolism)

The King family publicly stated that the federal government killed Dr. King and that James Earl Ray was just a patsy who was framed (Dexter King even met with Ray in his prison and they sought, without success, to get Ray the trial he never had).
In December 1999, after Ray's death in prison, the King family won a federal lawsuit against some of the perpetrators of the assassination. The jury found that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the victim of a murder conspiracy - not a lone gunman. This astounding jury verdict is rarely mentioned by the media. The facts are fairly straightforward, confirmed by a federal jury verdict and endorsed by the King family.

The best way to celebrate Dr. King’s legacy is to work for a world beyond militarism, for non-violence and economic justice.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1967 Speech Against War and Injustice - Timely Today. You can find complete copies of the speech on line, also on youtube. Please take the time to view them. You will see that if you change the words Viet Nam to Iraq and Afghanistan, the speech could be relevant today.

Today marks the 44th anniversary of his assassination.

They slew the dreamer - long live the dream.

Remembering Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Let's Continue to Move Forward Together

Today is Martin Luther King Day. On this day we celebrate the life and legacy of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who devoted his life to the pursuit of justice and equality for all.

President Ronald Reagan signed the King Holiday Bill into law on November 2, 1983—fifteen years after the assassination of the civil rights leader. A congressman from Michigan introduced the legislation just a few months after Dr. King’s death in 1968, but it took years of petitions, politics, and personal appeals from Coretta Scott King to get it passed.

Today, as we celebrate the 83rd anniversary of Dr. King's birth, I am reminded of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.

"I traveled with friends and neighbors from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C. We caught the bus at midnight and arrived in D.C. in the early hours of August 28th.

We were filled with the passion and promise of change, ignited by the idea that, just maybe, if enough people showed up, the world would understand we were not satisfied with the current conditions of racism and the exclusion of so many in the United States.

After arriving in the Capital, we joined the organized march from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. We stood in front of the podium, close enough to see and hear the speakers. The "Big Six" organizers of the march were Dr. King, of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference; James Farmer, of the Congress of Racial Equality; John Lewis, of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee; A. Philip Randolph, of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters; Roy Wilkins, of the NAACP; and Whitney Young Jr., of the National Urban League. The event included musical performances by Marian Anderson and Mahalia Jackson.

The written demands of the march were the passage of meaningful civil rights legislation; the elimination of racial segregation in public schools; protection for demonstrators against police brutality; a major public-works program to provide jobs; the passage of a law prohibiting racial discrimination in public and private hiring; a $2 an hour minimum wage; and self-government for the District of Columbia, which had a black majority.

The events were emotional, as 250,000 people from all walks of life, of different complexions, cultures and faiths, joined hands. Together we sang "We Shall Overcome." On that day our lives were changed forever. We wept, we laughed, we experienced joy and, most importantly, we returned to our homes with a renewed commitment to make a difference in the world. We were asked to take the message of a call for change back to our various communities.

I recently came across a paper that I had written on that day in 1963. Here is what I wrote:

"I pledge I will not relax until victory is won.

I pledge to carry the message to my friends and my neighbors back home and arouse them to an equal commitment and equal effort.

I will march and I will write letters.

I will demonstrate and I will vote.

I will work to make sure that my voice and my brothers' voices will ring out in all corners of the land.

I pledge my heart, my mind and my body unequivocally and without regard to personal sacrifice, to the achievement of social peace through social justice."

Today, I recognize that I was filled with youthful enthusiasm when I wrote those words. But I feel proud as I realize that during the time that has lapsed since that day, I have done my best to fulfill the pledge.”

**Portions of this were first published in The Buffalo News, New York - January 17, 2009

*****

In 2012, we are remember that we are the change that we are looking for. Let's continue to move forward together for a unified future.

On this special day take a moment to honor Dr. King’s work and reflect on his dream for America. Find out how you can participate in the national day of service and volunteer on Martin Luther King Day

peacesojourner

Sunday Reflection - Remembering Dr. King’s Birthday

Remembering Dr. King’s Birthday

Today marks the third anniversary of the birth of my on-line blog site ‘Peacesojourner’.

I started this blog on a day that was very symbolic to me because January 15, 2009 was the 80th anniversary of the birth of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Here is what I wrote on my very first blog in 2009:

‘I have read several accounts of people speculating about what Dr. King would think of what is happening in the world today.

During the Civil Rights struggles of the 60's people marched and protested for basic rights such as eating at a lunch counter, attending schools in their own neighborhoods, being hired for a job for which they were qualified, and to exercise the most fundamental right of citizenship, to vote. We demanded justice and equality for everyone, not just the chosen few.

Yes, in many ways we are a better country today, and in some ways, the nation is moving beyond 'The Dream', but a look at recent news headlines tells the real story:

- Palestinian Death Toll in Gaza Approaches 1000 - Cemeteries Running Out of Space

- Bush Admin Official Admits Gitmo Prisoner Tortured

- 4 Charged in Election Night Hate Crimes

- 4,225 men and women from the USA have died in the current Iraq War

- Over 500,000 Lose Jobs in December - Official Unemployment Rate at 7.2%

- Illinois House Votes to Impeach Blagojevich

- A Transit Police Officer in Oakland, CA shot Oscar Grant execution style. He was shot in the back while facedown on the subway platform, unarmed and posing no threat.

I believe that if Dr. King were alive today he would still be trying to make changes for basic human rights. I also believe that he would have been the person chosen to give the prayer at the upcoming inauguration of President Barack Obama, and that he would have been beaming with joy.

Dr. King spoke the following words when he was speaking out about the US involvement in Viet Nam. The words are still very relevant today:

"If we assume that life is worth living and that humans have the right to survival, then we must find an alternative to war. In a day when vehicles hurtle through outer space, and guided ballistic missiles carve highways of death through the stratosphere; no nation can claim victory in war.

The church cannot be silent while humankind faces the threat of nuclear annihilation. If the church is true to her mission, she must call for an end to the arms race.

I am convinced that if we succumb to the temptation to use violence in our struggle for freedom, unborn generations will be the recipients of a long and desolate night of bitterness, and our chief legacy to them will be a never-ending reign of chaos.

Forgiveness is not an occasional act: it is a permanent attitude."

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’

*****

Today is the 83^rd anniversary of the birth of Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

He will never be forgotten. May he Rest in Peace.

THEY SLEW THE DREAMER - LONG LIVE THE DREAM

peacesojourner

Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr on this day

Remembering Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the 82nd anniversary of his birth.

Dr. King's words are still relevant today:

"If we assume that life is worth living and that humans have the right to survival,

then we must find an alternative to war.

In a day when vehicles hurtle through outer space, and guided ballistic missiles carve highways of death through the stratosphere, no nation can claim victory in war.

The church cannot be silent while humankind faces the threat of nuclear annihilation.

If the church is true to her mission, she must call for an end to the arms race.

I am convinced that if we succumb to the temptation to use violence in our struggle for freedom, unborn generations will be the recipients of a long and desolate night of bitterness, and our chief legacy to them will be a never ending reign of chaos.

Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude."

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

THEY SLEW THE DREAMER -

LONG LIVE THE DREAM

Martin Luther King Jr. - Assassinated April 4, 1968

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 15, 1929 – April 4, l968

Place of birth: Atlanta, Georgia. His grandfather began the family's long tenure as pastors of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, serving from 1914 to 1931; his father also served, and from 1960 until his death Martin Luther acted as co-pastor.

While in college in Boston he met and married Coretta Scott. Two sons and two daughters were born.

Movement: African-American Civil Rights Movement and Peace movement.

Major organizations: President of Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) 1957

Notable prizes: Nobel Peace Prize (1964)

Presidential Medal of Freedom (1977, posthumous)

Congressional Gold Medal (2004, posthumous)

Alma mater: Morehouse College, Crozer Theological Seminary,Boston University

Religion: Baptist

Influences: Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, Benjamin Mays, Hosea Williams, Rosa Parks, Bayard Rustin, Henry David Thoreau, Howard Thurman, Leo Tolstoy.

In 1954, Martin Luther King became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. 


At the age of thirty-five, Martin Luther King, Jr., was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. When notified of his selection, he announced that he would turn over the prize money of $54,123 to the furtherance of the civil rights movement.


Dr. King's April 4, 1967 speech "A Time to Break Silence: Declaration of Independence from the Vietnam War" was profound and a stark warning against endless war.
He said “I am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a radical revolution of values. We must rapidly begin the shift from a 'thing-oriented' society to a 'person-oriented' society. When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, materialism and militarism are incapable of being conquered. .... 
A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death." (MLK, April 4, 1967)

The speech was delivered in the Riverside Church in New York City, to the clergy and laymen concerned about Viet Nam.

On the evening of April 4, 1968, while standing on the balcony of his motel room
in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was to lead a protest march in sympathy with striking garbage workers of that city, he was assassinated. He was killed exactly one year to the day after his greatest speech – against the War on Viet Nam. (in case one misses the symbolism)

The King family publicly stated that the federal government killed Dr. King and that James Earl Ray was just a patsy who was framed (Dexter King even met with Ray in his prison and they sought, without success, to get Ray the trial he never had).
In December 1999, after Ray's death in prison, the King family won a federal lawsuit against some of the perpetrators of the assassination. The jury found that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the victim of a murder conspiracy - not a lone gunman. This astounding jury verdict is rarely mentioned by the media. The facts are fairly straightforward, confirmed by a federal jury verdict and endorsed by the King family.

The best way to celebrate Dr. King’s legacy is to work for a world beyond militarism, for non-violence and economic justice.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1967 Speech Against War and Injustice - Timely Today. You can find complete copies of the speech on line, also on youtube. Please take the time to view them. You will see that if you change the words Viet Nam to Iraq and Afghanistan, the speech could be relevant today.

Tomorrow marks the 42nd anniversary of his assassination.

They slew the dreamer - long live the dream.

In Memory of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s

6 Facts About Non-Violent Resistance

Adapted from Peace to All Beings, by Judy Carman (Lantern Books, 2003).

From his deep studies of Gandhi and his own experience, Martin Luther King Jr. developed a list of six facts to help people understand non-violent resistance and join with him in his vision.

King’s words are as insightful and thought provoking today as they were when he wrote them:

1. Non-violent resistance is not for cowards. It is not a quiet, passive acceptance of evil. One is passive and non-violent physically, but very active spiritually, always seeking ways to persuade the opponent of advantages to the way of love, cooperation, and peace.

2. The goal is not to defeat or humiliate the opponent but rather to win him or her over to understanding new ways to create cooperation and community.

3. The non-violent resister attacks the forces of evil, not the people who are engaged in injustice. As King said in Montgomery, “We are out to defeat injustice and not white persons who may be unjust.”

4. The non-violent resister accepts suffering without retaliating; accepts violence, but never commits it. Gandhi said, “Rivers of blood may have to flow before we gain our freedom, but it must be our blood.” Gandhi and King both understood that suffering by activists had the mysterious power of converting opponents who would otherwise refuse to listen.

5. In non-violent resistance, one learns to avoid physical violence toward others and also learns to love the opponents with “agape” or unconditional love–which is love given not for what one will receive in return, but for the sake of love alone. It is God flowing through the human heart. Agape is ahimsa. “Along the way of life, someone must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate,” said King.

6. Non-violent resistance is based on the belief that the universe is just. There is God or a creative force that is moving us toward universal love and wholeness continually. Therefore, all our work for justice will bear fruit - the fruit of love, peace, and justice for all beings everywhere.”

*****

Today has been designated a day of volunteering in memory of Dr. King.

Find something to do in your community the rewards will be all yours.

peacesojourner

Remembering Dr. King on his 81st Birthday

Remembering Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the anniversary of his birth.

Dr. King's words are still relevant today:

"If we assume that life is worth living and that humans have the right to survival,

then we must find an alternative to war.

In a day when vehicles hurtle through outer space, and guided ballistic missiles carve highways of death through the stratosphere, no nation can claim victory in war.

The church cannot be silent while humankind faces the threat of nuclear annihilation.

If the church is true to her mission, she must call for an end to the arms race.

I am convinced that if we succumb to the temptation to use violence in our struggle for freedom, unborn generations will be the recipients of a long and desolate night of bitterness, and our chief legacy to them will be a never ending reign of chaos.

Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude."

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

THEY SLEW THE DREAMER - LONG LIVE THE DREAM

Let's Continue to Move Forward Together

President-elect Barack Obama has called upon all Americans to participate in a national call to service on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the day before the inauguration. Obama states that the renewal of America's promise begins with each one of us making a commitment to bring change to our local communities.

As we celebrate the 80th anniversary of Dr. King's birth, I am reminded of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.

I traveled with friends and neighbors from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C. We caught the bus at midnight and arrived in D.C. in the early hours of August 28th.

We were filled with the passion and promise of change, ignited by the idea that, just maybe, if enough people showed up, the world would understand we were not satisfied with the current conditions of racism and the exclusion of so many in the United States.

After arriving in the Capital, we joined the organized march from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. We stood in front of the podium, close enough to see and hear the speakers. The "Big Six" organizers of the march were Dr. King, of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference; James Farmer, of the Congress of Racial Equality; John Lewis, of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee; A. Philip Randolph, of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters; Roy Wilkins, of the NAACP; and Whitney Young Jr., of the National Urban League. The event included musical performances by Marian Anderson and Mahalia Jackson.

The written demands of the march were the passage of meaningful civil rights legislation; the elimination of racial segregation in public schools; protection for demonstrators against police brutality; a major public-works program to provide jobs; the passage of a law prohibiting racial discrimination in public and private hiring; a $2 an hour minimum wage; and self-government for the District of Columbia, which had a black majority.

The events were emotional, as 250,000 people from all walks of life, of different complexions, cultures and faiths, joined hands. Together we sang "We Shall Overcome." On that day our lives were changed forever. We wept, we laughed, we experienced joy and, most importantly, we returned to our homes with a renewed commitment to make a difference in the world. We were asked to take the message of a call for change back to our various communities.

I recently came across a  paper I had written on that day in 1963. Here is what I wrote:

"I pledge I will not relax until victory is won.

I pledge to carry the message to my friends and my neighbors back home and arouse them to an equal commitment and equal effort.

I will march and I will write letters.

I will demonstrate and I will vote. 

I will work to make sure that my voice and my brothers' voices will ring out in all corners of the land.

I pledge my heart, my mind and my body unequivocally and without regard to personal sacrifice, to the achievement of social peace through social justice."

Today, I recognize that I was filled with youthful enthusiasm when I wrote those words. But I feel proud as I realize that during the time that has lapsed since that day, I have done my best to fulfill the pledge.

As President-elect Obama puts out the call for service, we are reminded that we are the change that we are looking for. Let's continue to move forward together for a unified future.

    WE ARE THE CHANGE THAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR 

First published in The Buffalo News, New York - January 17, 2009

Remembering Dr. King on his 80th Birthday

Today marks the birth of my on-line blog site.

This day is symbolic to me because January 15, 2009 is the 80th anniversary of the birth of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 

I have read several accounts of people speculating about what Dr. King would think of what is happening in the world today.

During the Civil Rights struggles of the 60's people marched and protested for basic rights such as eating at a lunch counter,  attending schools in their own neighborhoods, being hired for a job for which they were qualified, and to exercise the most fundamental right of citizenship, to vote.  We demanded justice and equality for everyone, not just the chosen few.

Yes, in many ways we are a better country today, and in some ways, the nation is moving beyond 'The Dream', but a look at recent news headlines tells the real story:

     - Palestinian Death Toll in Gaza Approaches 1000 - Cemeteries Running Out of   Space

     - Bush Admin Official Admits Gitmo Prisoner Tortured

     - 4 Charged in Election Night Hate Crimes

     - 4,225 men and women from the USA have died in the current Iraq War

     - Over 500,000 Lose Jobs in December - Official Unemployment Rate at 7.2%

     - Illinois House Votes to Impeach Blagojevich

     - Oscar Grant was shot execution style by a Transit Police Officer in Oakland,     CA. He was shot in the back while facedown on the subway platform, unarmed       and posing no threat.

I believe that if Dr. King were alive today he would still be trying to make changes for basic human rights. I also believe that he would have been the person chosen to give the prayer at the upcoming inauguration :-) and that he would have been beaming with joy.

The following words were spoken by Dr. King when he was speaking out about the US involvement in Viet Nam. The words are still very relevant today:

"If we assume that life is worth living and that humans have the right to survival, then we must find an alternative to war. In a day when vehicles hurtle through outer space, and guided ballistic missiles carve highways of death through the stratosphere, no nation can claim victory in war.

The church cannot be silent while humankind faces the threat of nuclear annihilation. If the church is true to her mission, she must call for an end to the arms race.

I am convinced that if we succumb to the temptation to use violence in our struggle for freedom, unborn generations will be the recipients of a long and desolate night of bitterness, and our chief legacy to them will be a never ending reign of chaos.

Forgiveness is not an occasional act: it is a permanent attitude."

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

     THEY SLEW THE DREAMER - LONG LIVE THE DREAM