"GREATEST DEMONSTRATION IN CITY'S HISTORY"

MARCH ON WASHINGTON DRAWS 200,000 FROM 'MANY PARTS OF THE COUNTRY'

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On August 28, 1963, "men and women from many parts of the country gathered for the greatest demonstration in the city's history."

The March on Washington* began at the Washington Monument grounds and moved toward the Lincoln Memorial where two hours of speeches were given.

Police estimated the crowd, according to The Evening Star, at between 175,000 and 200,000. 

Heading the march was the leader A. Philip Randolph**.  Marchers chanted "Freedom, Freedom, Freedom."

JFK+50 NOTE

President Kennedy said, 

"All of our citizens are entitled to a full membership in the national community.  The gains of 1963 will never be reversed."  

JFK welcomed the leaders of the march to The White House & said to them, "I have a dream."

*March on Washington for Jobs & Freedom, August 28, 1963 was held to advance the civil & economic rights of African-Americans.  The most notable of the speeches given at the Lincoln Memorial was that of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. titled "I Have a Dream".

**Asa Philip Randolph (1889-1979) was born in Crescent City, Florida & educated at City College of New York.  APR became a railwayman, trade unionist & civil rights activist.   

SOURCES

"Eager, Orderly Marchers Join Demonstration," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., August 28, 1963, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/

"Rights Marchers Top 175,000," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., August 28, 1963, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/

 

 

Civil Rights Leaders of March on Washington

Constitution Avenue

Washington, D.C.

August 28 1963

Photo by Rowland Scheiman

USNA

"THAT'S A TERRIFIC SPEECH. HE'S DAMN GOOD!"

DR. KING DELIVERS RINGING SPEECH AT WASHINGTON MARCH

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On August 28, 1963, the most famous speech of the Civil Rights Movement was delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Dr. King's speech was the highlight of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom attended by a quarter of a million people and watched by millions more on television.While there were many speakers at the event, it was Dr. King's speech that would resonate throughout the land.

Dr. King said...

"I still have a dream.  It is a dream that is deeply rooted in the American dream. I 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 self-evident, that all men are created equal'". 

After the event, civil rights leaders, including Dr. King, Roy Wilkins,  Whitney Young, Jr., John Lewis  and A. Philip Randolph, met with President John F. Kennedy at the White House.  John Lewis said that the President greeted each of them at the door of the Oval Office and congratulated them with the words, "You did a great job."

The March on Washington was the brainchild of A. Philip Randolph who had attempted to lead a march in 1941 which never materialized but resulted in FDR's executive order prohibiting discrimination in munition plants.

Mr. Randolph, who became the Director of the March on Washington, had been counseling Dr. King to hold a march in the Nation's Capital in 1963.
JFK's speech on civil rights in June, along with his submission of a civil rights bill, gave a strong boost to Randolph's idea.

JFK had been concerned that the March on Washington would turn violent and hurt chances for the passage of his civil rights legislation.  When the day ended with no violence, the President was relieved and pleased.  He said privately earlier in the day that he wished he could be "out there" with the marchers.

Thurston Clarke says that after JFK watched Dr. King's speech, he said...

"That's a terrific speech.   He's damn good."

MLK, Jr. Memorial

Washington, D.C.

Photo by John White (2011)

MLK, Jr. Memorial

Washington, D.C.

Photo by John White (2011)

YOU DID A GREAT JOB!

MARCH FOR JOBS & FREEDOM

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On August 28, 1963 the largest demonstration for civil rights in the history of the United States of America, officially known as the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom,  was held here in the Nation's Capital.

The "March on Washington," as it came to be known, was organized by Bayard Rustin* and directed by A. Philip Randolph**.   President John F. Kennedy's speech on civil rights in June, along with his submission of a civil rights bill, gave a strong boost to Randolph's idea for the event.

Speeches were made by notable civil rights activists including Josephine Baker and John Lewis.  There were musical performances by Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Mahalia Jackson and Peter, Paul and Mary. Entertainers Harry Belafonte, Marlon Brando and Charlton Heston also attended.

The most famous of the orations on that day, of course, was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech.

JFK had been concerned that the march would turn violent and hurt chances for the passage of his civil rights legislation.  When the day ended with no violence, the President was relieved and pleased.

After the march, Dr. King, Roy Wilkins,  Whitney Young, Jr., John Lewis  and A. Philip Randolph, met with President Kennedy at the White House.   Mr. Lewis said that the President greeted each of them at the door of the Oval Office and congratulated them with the words, "You did a great job."

*Bayard Rustin (1912-1987) was born in West Chester, PA & attended Wilberforce University, Cheyney State Teachers College & City College of NY.

In addition to his leadership in the civil rights movement, BR was an accomplished tenor vocalist.

**A. Philip Randolph (1889-1979) was born in Crescent City, FL & attended City College of NY.  APR founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters in 1925.  He was recognized for his leadership in the civil rights movement by presentation of the Presidential Medal of Freedom by LBJ in 1964.

SOURCES

"March on Washington," www.history.com/

"March on Washington For Jobs and Freedom (August 28, 1963)," www.blackpast.org/

"We Shall Overcome: The History of the Civil Rights Movement As It Happened," by Herb Boyd, Sourcebooks, Inc. Naperville, Illinois, 2004.

Leaders of the March

US Information Agency

NARA Photo

HE GAVE VOICE TO OUR DEEPEST DREAMS & MOST LASTING IDEALS

MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. BIRTH ANNIVERSARY & HOLIDAY

Atlanta, Georgia  (JFK+50) Eighty-nine years ago, January 15, 1929, the leader of the civil rights movement, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born at 501 Auburn Street here in Atlanta.  Martin's father, Michael, changed his name to honor the German protestant religious leader, Martin Luther.  MLK, Jr.'s mother was Alberta Williams King.

Martin graduated from Morehouse College in 1948 with a B.A. in Sociology.  
He earned his Bachelor of Divinity degree from Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania 3 years later.  King married Coretta Scott on June 18, 1953 and received his PhD from Boston University in 1955, the same year he led the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott.

Dr. King was pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery before becoming co-pastor with his father at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.  He preached a philosophy of non-violent protest for civil rights, a philosophy which was patterned after that of Mohandas Gandhi.

During the March on Washington for equal rights in August 1963, Dr. King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech which is considered to be his best.Afterward, King and other civil rights leaders met with President John F. Kennedy at the White House.  JFK greeted them with the words..."I have a dream."

In 1964, MLK was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and in the following years, while continuing to lead the civil rights movement, became an opponent of the war in Vietnam.

The Martin Luther King, Jr. national holiday was established in 1983.  It is celebrated on the 3rd Monday of January.The bill for the holiday was signed by President Ronald Reagan on November 2, 1983 and the holiday was first observed in 1986.

At the dedication ceremonies of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C., President Barack Obama said...

"In this place (Dr. King) will stand for all time, a black preacher with no official rank or title who gave voice to our deepest dreams and our most lasting ideals."

              

             Martin Luther King Memorial
                Photo by John White (2011)

I HAVE A DREAM

MLK'S "I HAVE A DREAM SPEECH" WAS 51 YEARS AGO TODAY

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) The most famous speech of the Civil Rights Movement was delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. fifty-one years ago this afternoon, August 28, 1963.

Dr. King's speech was the highlight of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom attended by a quarter of a million people and watched by millions more on television.

MLK, Jr. Memorial

Washington, D.C.

Photo by John White (2011)

While there were many speakers at the event, it was Dr. King's speech that would resonate throughout the land.

Dr. King said...

"I still have a dream.  It is a dream that is deeply rooted in the American dream.

 I 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 self-evident, that all men are created equal'.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

When we allow freedom (to) ring....we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old negro spiritual, 'Free at last,  free at last, thank God Almighty, we're free at last.'"

MLK, Jr. Memorial

Washington, D.C.

Photo by John White (2011)

After the event, civil rights leaders, including Dr. King, Roy Wilkins,  Whitney Young, Jr., John Lewis  and A. Philip Randolph, met with President John F. Kennedy at the White House.

John Lewis said that the President greeted each of them at the door of the Oval Office and congratulated them with the words, "You did a great job."

The March on Washington was the brainchild of A. Philip Randolph who had attempted to lead a march in 1941 which never materialized but resulted in FDR's executive order prohibiting discrimination in munition plants.

Mr. Randolph, who became the Director of the March on Washington, had been counseling Dr. King to hold a march in the Nation's Capital in 1963.

President Kennedy's speech on civil rights in June along with his submission of a civil rights bill, gave a strong boost to Randolph's idea.

JFK had been concerned that the March on Washington would turn violent and hurt chances for the passage of his civil rights legislation.  When the day ended with no violence, the President was relieved and pleased.

He said privately earlier in the day that he wished he could be "out there" with the marchers.

Thurston Clarke says that after JFK watched Dr. King's speech, he said...

"That's a terrific speech.   He's damn good."

Dr. Martin Luther King

Washington, D.C.

August 28, 1963

At the end of the march, the White House issued this statement...

"We have witnessed today...tens of thousands of Americans...exercising their right to assemble peaceably and direct the widest possible attention to a great national issue.

Efforts to secure equal treatment and equal opportunity for all without regard to race, color, creed or nationality are neither novel nor difficult to understand.

What is different today is the intensified and widespread public awareness of the need to move forward in achieving these objectives."

SOURCE

"We Shall Overcome: The History of the Civil Rights Movement As It Happened," by Herb Boyd, Sourcebooks, Inc. Naperville, Illinois, 2004.

MAHALIA JACKSON SAID:
 "MARTIN, TELL THEM ABOUT THE DREAM!"

Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. asked the Queen of Gospel Music to sing "I've Been Buked and I've Been Scorned" before he spoke at the March on Washington.

Before she sang, however, Mahalia Jackson said to Dr. King...

 "Martin, tell them about the dream".

Dr. King had included the "I have a dream" theme in previous speeches and sermons but it was not included in the text of his March on Washington address. 

He followed Mahalia's advice, however, and added "I have a dream"  to his closing his remarks.

Mahalia Jackson

Queen of Gospel Music

Photo by Carl Van Vechten (1962)

                       

MARCH ON WASHINGTON ENDS WITH A DREAM

August 28, 1963


MARCH ON WASHINGTON ENDS WITH A DREAM


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) The "March on Washington for Jobs & Freedom", attended by 250,000 people who gathered around the Lincoln Memorial, concluded today with an emotional & stirring address by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Bayard Rustin & Cleveland Robinson
   March on Washington organizers
                    August 7, 1963
         Library of Congress Photo


Dr. King said:


"Even though we face...difficulties, I still have a dream...that one day this nation will rise up & live out the true meaning of its creed 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal'.


When we allow freedom (to) ring....we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children....will...join hands & sing....'Free at last,  free at last, thank God Almighty, we're free at last.'"


After the event, civil rights leaders, including Dr. King & Roy Wilkins, met with President Kennedy at the White House who greeted them with the words: "I have a dream."*


*The March on Washington was initiated by A. Philip Randolph who had planned an earlier march in 1941.

Dr. King Gives "I Have a Dream" Speech


August 28, 1963



MAHALIA JACKSON ADVISES KING TO "TELL THEM ABOUT THE DREAM"


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. asked the Queen of Gospel Music to sing "I've Been Buked & I've Been Scorned" before he spoke at the March on Washington today at the Lincoln Memorial.


Before she sang, however, Miss Jackson said to Dr. King: "Martin, tell them about the dream".*


*Dr. King had included the "I have a dream" theme in previous speeches & sermons but it was not included in his March on Washington address.  He followed Mahalia Jackson's advice & ended his remarks with "I have a dream...".

                   Mahalia Jackson
             Queen of Gospel Music
Photo by Carl Van Vechten (1962)


August 28, 1955


EMMETT TILL MURDERED IN MISSISSIPPI


Money, Mississippi (JFK+50) Emmett Till, African-American teenager from Chicago, Illinois, was brutally murdered in Money, Mississippi today & his body was dumped into the Tallahatchie River.


Till was in Mississippi visiting relatives & while at Bryan's Grocery & Meat Market in Money, according to witnesses, "flirted" with the store owner's wife who is white.*


*Emmett Till's corpse was recovered 3 days later & returned by the request of his mother to Chicago for burial.  On September 23 an all-white jury found accused murderers J.W. Milam & Roy Bryant not guilty.

            Remains of Bryant's Grocery 
                     Money, Mississippi
          Photo by WhisperToMe (2009)




"Twas down in Mississippi, not so long ago
 When a young boy from Chicago 
 walked through a Southern door
 This boy's fateful tragedy you should remember well
 The color of his skin was black
 and his name was Emmett Till


 If you can't speak out against this kind of thing
 A crime that's so unjust
 Your eyes are filled with dead man's dirt
 Your mind is filled with dust
 Your arms & legs they must be in shackles  & chains
 And your blood it must refuse to flow
 For you to let this human race
 fall down so God-awful low."


"The Ballad of Emmett Till"
             by Bob Dylan


August 28, 1961


JFK WELCOMES 1ST PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) President John F. Kennedy welcomed the 1st group of Peace Corps volunteers to the White House today.


The President told the young men & women:


"You will be the personification of a special group of young Americans & if you can impress (with) your commitment to freedom (and) to your pride in your country....the influence may be far-reaching."


These 1st Peace Corps volunteers will go to Ghana & Tanganyika to teach high school students.

JFK Greets Peace Corps Volunteers


August 28, 1968


ANTI-WAR PROTESTERS & POLICE CLASH IN CHICAGO


Chicago, Illinois (JFK+50) Thousands of anti-Vietnam War protesters massed today in downtown Chicago as the 1968 Democratic National Convention is in session in the city.


Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, a supporter of Vice-President Hubert Humphrey, sent in police to restore order.


The police, however, used clubs & tear gas to get the job done.  Many protesters were beaten, arrested & taken to jail.


All of this was broadcast on television while the protesters chanted: "The whole world is watching."*


*This event has been described as a "turning point in the cold war" as more & more Americans reject the necessity for fighting in Southeast Asia.

       Police Use Clubs on Protesters
              Chicago, Illinois (1968)


August 28, 1917


SUFFRAGISTS ARRESTED AT THE WHITE HOUSE


Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) Women suffragists gathered in front of the White House today in support of a constitutional amendment which would give women the right to vote.


President Woodrow Wilson, who has opposed such an amendment, drove out of the gates of the mansion today & tipped his hat to the suffragists.


Later, however, an altercation broke out between the suffragists & some bystanders who apparently resented the women's signs opposing the war (WWI).


Some of the suffragists were arrested & taken to jail.

Suffragists at the White House Gate
                      January 1917