April 4, 1968

[Lady Day]

This was the day Rev. Martin Luther King was assassinated. CNN has some really wonderful coverage on this episode in American history. To think my mother and grandmother were alive and well during this time, and what they saw and how they participated really reflects on me and how I see my country.

I know its not really respectable to commemorate the day someone is killed, but I think, because this is such a recent happening, it still resonates with people.

I found myself over the last few days really reflecting on this. No, this man wasnt perfect, and Im sure, like many in this type of position, he saw his end coming. But what he was able to accomplish, by being a mark in history that people will learn from for many many more generations, and in that respect to be a mark for good and equality is one I hope to learn from and understand.

Thoughts?

LD

 

[scotrace]

The video interviews at CNN.com are not to be missed. Rev. Young, Rev. Jackson and Rev. Kyles, who were all present, recount those horror-filled moments.
How often do you get to hear eyewitness accounts of a major tranforming event?

 

[Flivver]

I am old enough to remember exactly where I was when I first heard of the assasination of Dr. King. I was riding in the car with my parents when a news bulletin interrupted the program we were listening to on the car radio.

I tend now to look back on the 1960s as good times, but aniversaries like this remind me that things really weren't as good as I sometimes remember them. The assasinations of JFK, Dr. King and RFK represent an unfortunate time in American history that I hope is never repeated.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I remember a Bible quote from my Sunday School days, from Ecclesiastes -- "A good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death than the day of one's birth." The point being that the accomplishments one accumulates by the time one passes away are more important to remember and commemorate than the simple fact of one's being born. I think that's especially true when remembering a life cut brutally short -- and especially in an era in which too many people turn once-solemn holidays into mere excuses for three-day weekends. Remember the man, certainly -- but more important, remember what he stood for, and the work he left unfinished.

 

[Mojito]

A most remarkable man, who has left a powerful international legacy.

My father met his wife, Coretta Scott King, at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in 1967 when he was doing some reporting on the Civil Rights movement. Said she was one of the most wonderful women he ever me - "she exuded gentleness and understanding."

 

[K.D. Lightner]

From the time of the early Civil Rights Movement, I had admired Dr. King, loved his speeches, which always made me shed tears, and all the work he did to further the causes and rights of African Americans and all oppressed people.

You can tell from his last major speech that he knew he was going to die. From the moment he opposed the Vietnam War, I believe he knew what was going to happen. But, he went on and kept marching and speaking.

I think he is one of the most dynamic and important people of the 20th century and for centuries to come.

karol