facts on martin luther king jr speech

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The first amendment, 10 fascinating facts about the “i have a dream” speech.

August 28, 2024 | by NCC Staff

Link : Full Speech from the National Archives

The speech was delivered to an estimated 250,000 people who came to Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963 to march for civil rights.

Here are 10 facts about the march and the events that led to the speech.

1. The official event was called the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.” On June 11, 1963, President John F. Kennedy made a nationally televised address calling for a drive for more civil rights. That same night, NAACP leader Medgar Evers was murdered in Mississippi.

2. Marches had been proposed before the Kennedy speech and Evers’ killing, but the events forced the issue. Kennedy met with civil rights leaders such as King, Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young and student leader John Lewis about a proposed march. Kennedy signaled his approval publicly in July when he was assured it would be a peaceful event.

3. The March was not universally supported by activists. Prominent objectors included Malcolm X and Strom Thurmond. The organizers didn’t agree on all the issues, either, but they did agree that people should march together at the event.

4. It also wasn’t the first threatened March on Washington by civil rights leaders. In 1941, organizers were planning a march to demand desegregation in the U.S. military as World War II approached. But President Franklin Roosevelt averted the march by signing Executive Order 8802 in June, 1941, banning discrimination in the federal government and defense industries. .

5. Almost no one could clearly hear King’s speech. An expensive sound system was installed for the event, but it was sabotaged right before it. Attorney General Robert Kennedy enlisted the Army Corps of Engineers to fix the system.

6. William Edward Burghardt "W. E. B." Du Bois, the co-founder of the NAACP, died on the day before the event at the age of 95 in Ghana. Roy Wilkins asked the marchers to honor Du Bois with a moment of silence.

7. An estimated 250,000 people attended the March . People came from all over the country, and few arrests were reported.

8. There were 10 speakers on the official program for the public event at the Lincoln Memorial: All of them were men. Rabbi Joachim Prinz spoke right before King.  There were no speakers after King, as organizers led the audience in a pledge and gave a benediction.

9. King almost didn’t give the “I Have a Dream” par t of the “I Have A Dream” speech. Singer Mahalia Jackson urged King to tell the audience “about the dream,” and King went into an improvised section of the speech.

10. The person who wound up with the typewritten speech given by King is retired college basketball coach George Raveling. A college basketball player at Villanova, organizers saw Raveling in the crowd and asked him to be a bodyguard on stage. He stood  next to King on stage, and decided to ask him for the paper copy of the speech. King obliged and Raveling has the speech locked away in a safe place, with no intention of selling it.

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7 Facts About Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech

On August 28, 1963, under a sweltering sun, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered by the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. to participate in an event formally known as the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. From start to finish, it was a passionate plea for civil rights reform, and one speech in particular captured the ethos of the moment. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 17-minute “I Have a Dream” address—which was broadcast in real time by TV networks and radio stations—was an oratorical masterpiece. Here are some facts about the inspired remarks that changed King's life, his movement, and the nation at large.

1. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the tenth orator to take the podium that day.

Organizers hoped the March would draw a crowd of about 100,000 people; more than twice as many showed up. There at the Lincoln Memorial, 10 civil rights activists were scheduled to give speeches—to be punctuated by hymns, prayers, pledges, benedictions, and choir performances.

King was the lineup’s tenth and final speaker. The list of orators also included labor icon A. Philip Randolph and 23-year-old John Lewis , who was then the national chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. (He’s now a U.S. congressman representing Georgia’s fifth district.)

2. Nelson Rockefeller inspired part of the "I Have A Dream" speech.

For years, Clarence B. Jones was Dr. King’s personal attorney, a trusted advisor, and one of his speechwriters. He also became a frequent intermediary between King and Stanley Levison , a progressive white lawyer who had drawn FBI scrutiny. In mid-August 1963, King asked Jones and Levison to prepare a draft of his upcoming March on Washington address.

“A conversation that I’d had [four months earlier] with then-New York governor Nelson Rockefeller inspired an opening analogy: African Americans marching to Washington to redeem a promissory note or a check for justice,” Jones recalled in 2011. “From there, a proposed draft took shape.”

3. The phrase “I have a dream” wasn’t in Martin Luther King, Jr.’s prepared speech.

On the eve of his big speech, King solicited last-minute input from union organizers, religious leaders, and other activists in the lobby of Washington, D.C.’s Willard Hotel. But when he finally faced the crowd at the Lincoln Memorial, the reverend went off-book. At first King more or less stuck to his notes, reciting the final written version of his address.

Then a voice rang out behind him. Seated nearby was gospel singer Mahalia Jackson , who yelled, “Tell ‘em about the dream, Martin!” Earlier in his career, King had spoken at length about his “dreams” of racial harmony. By mid-1963, he’d used the phrase “I have a dream” so often that confidants worried it was making him sound repetitive.

Jackson clearly didn't agree. At her urging, King put down his notes and delivered the words that solidified his legacy:

“I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream ... I have a dream that my four 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."

King's friends were stunned. None of these lines had made it into the printed statement King brought to the podium. “In front of all those people, cameras, and microphones, Martin winged it,” Jones would later say. “But then, no one I’ve ever met could improvise better.”

4. Sidney Poitier heard the "I Have A Dream" speech in person.

Sidney Poitier, who was born in the Bahamas on February 20, 1927, broke Hollywood's glass ceiling at the 1964 Academy Awards when he became the first African American to win the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in Lilies of the Field (and the only one until Denzel Washington won for Training Day nearly 40 years later). Poitier, a firm believer in civil rights, attended the ’63 March on Washington along with such other movie stars as Marlon Brando , Charlton Heston, and Paul Newman.

5. The "I Have A Dream" speech caught the FBI’s attention.

The FBI had had been wary of King since the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott. FBI director J. Edgar Hoover was perturbed by the reverend’s association with Stanley Levison, who’d been a financial manager for the Communist party in America. King's “I Have a Dream” speech only worsened the FBI’s outlook on the civil rights leader.

In a memo written just two days after the speech, domestic intelligence chief William Sullivan said, “We must mark [King] now, if we have not done so before, as the most dangerous Negro of the future in this nation from the standpoint of communism, the Negro, and national security.” Before the year was out, attorney general Robert F. Kennedy gave the FBI permission to wiretap King’s telephone conversations.

6. In 1999, scholars named "I Have a Dream" the best American speech of the 20th century.

All these years later, “I Have a Dream” remains an international rallying cry for peace. (Signs bearing that timeless message appeared at the Tiananmen Square protests ). When communications professors at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Texas A&M used input from 137 scholars to create a list of the 100 greatest American speeches given in the 20th century, King’s magnum opus claimed the number one spot—beating out the first inaugural addresses of John F. Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt , among others.

7. A basketball Hall of Famer owns the original copy of the "I Have a Dream" speech.

George Raveling, an African-American athlete and D.C. native, played college hoops for the Villanova Wildcats from 1956 through 1960. Three years after his graduation, he attended the March on Washington. He and a friend volunteered to join the event’s security detail, which is how Raveling ended up standing just a few yards away from Martin Luther King Jr. during his “I Have a Dream” address. Once the speech ended, Raveling approached the podium and noticed that the three-page script was in the Reverend’s hand. “Dr. King, can I have that copy?,” he asked. Raveling's request was granted .

Raveling went on to coach the Washington State Cougars, Iowa Hawkeyes, and University of Southern California Trojans. In 2015, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Although a collector once offered him $3 million for Dr. King’s famous document, Raveling’s refused to part with it.

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Read Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech in its entirety

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. addresses the crowd at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., where he gave his "I Have a Dream" speech on Aug. 28, 1963, as part of the March on Washington. AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. addresses the crowd at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., where he gave his "I Have a Dream" speech on Aug. 28, 1963, as part of the March on Washington.

Monday marks Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Below is a transcript of his celebrated "I Have a Dream" speech, delivered on Aug. 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. NPR's Talk of the Nation aired the speech in 2010 — listen to that broadcast at the audio link above.

Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders gather before a rally at the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 28, 1963, in Washington. National Archives/Hulton Archive via Getty Images hide caption

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.: Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But 100 years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself in exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition. In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check.

Code Switch

The power of martin luther king jr.'s anger.

When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men — yes, Black men as well as white men — would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked insufficient funds.

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.

Martin Luther King is not your mascot

We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.

Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

Civil rights protesters march from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial for the March on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963. Kurt Severin/Three Lions/Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. 1963 is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual.

There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

Throughline

Bayard rustin: the man behind the march on washington (2021).

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny.

And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, when will you be satisfied? We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.

We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: for whites only.

We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote.

No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream.

How The Voting Rights Act Came To Be And How It's Changed

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our Northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream 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.

People clap and sing along to a freedom song between speeches at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963. Express Newspapers via Getty Images hide caption

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

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. I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day down in Alabama with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, one day right down in Alabama little Black boys and Black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

Nikole Hannah-Jones on the power of collective memory

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This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning: My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims' pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California. But not only that, let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia. Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, 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 are free at last.

Correction Jan. 15, 2024

A previous version of this transcript included the line, "We have also come to his hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now." The correct wording is "We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now."

"I Have a Dream"

August 28, 1963

Martin Luther King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered at the 28 August 1963  March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom , synthesized portions of his previous sermons and speeches, with selected statements by other prominent public figures.

King had been drawing on material he used in the “I Have a Dream” speech in his other speeches and sermons for many years. The finale of King’s April 1957 address, “A Realistic Look at the Question of Progress in the Area of Race Relations,” envisioned a “new world,” quoted the song “My Country ’Tis of Thee,” and proclaimed that he had heard “a powerful orator say not so long ago, that … Freedom must ring from every mountain side…. Yes, let it ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado…. Let it ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia. Let it ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let it ring from every mountain and hill of Alabama. From every mountain side, let freedom ring” ( Papers  4:178–179 ).

In King’s 1959 sermon “Unfulfilled Hopes,” he describes the life of the apostle Paul as one of “unfulfilled hopes and shattered dreams” ( Papers  6:360 ). He notes that suffering as intense as Paul’s “might make you stronger and bring you closer to the Almighty God,” alluding to a concept he later summarized in “I Have a Dream”: “unearned suffering is redemptive” ( Papers  6:366 ; King, “I Have a Dream,” 84).

In September 1960, King began giving speeches referring directly to the American Dream. In a speech given that month at a conference of the North Carolina branches of the  National Association for the Advancement of Colored People , King referred to the unexecuted clauses of the preamble to the U.S. Constitution and spoke of America as “a dream yet unfulfilled” ( Papers  5:508 ). He advised the crowd that “we must be sure that our struggle is conducted on the highest level of dignity and discipline” and reminded them not to “drink the poisonous wine of hate,” but to use the “way of nonviolence” when taking “direct action” against oppression ( Papers  5:510 ).

King continued to give versions of this speech throughout 1961 and 1962, then calling it “The American Dream.” Two months before the March on Washington, King stood before a throng of 150,000 people at Cobo Hall in Detroit to expound upon making “the American Dream a reality” (King, Address at Freedom Rally, 70). King repeatedly exclaimed, “I have a dream this afternoon” (King, Address at Freedom Rally, 71). He articulated the words of the prophets Amos and Isaiah, declaring that “justice will roll down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream,” for “every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low” (King, Address at Freedom Rally, 72). As he had done numerous times in the previous two years, King concluded his message imagining the 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 with the Negroes in the spiritual of old: Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!” (King,  Address at Freedom Rally , 73).

As King and his advisors prepared his speech for the conclusion of the 1963 march, he solicited suggestions for the text. Clarence  Jones   offered a metaphor for the unfulfilled promise of constitutional rights for African Americans, which King incorporated into the final text: “America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned” (King, “I Have a Dream,” 82). Several other drafts and suggestions were posed. References to Abraham Lincoln and the  Emancipation Proclamation  were sustained throughout the countless revisions. King recalled that he did not finish the complete text of the speech until 3:30 A.M. on the morning of 28 August.

Later that day, King stood at the podium overlooking the gathering. Although a typescript version of the speech was made available to the press on the morning of the march, King did not merely read his prepared remarks. He later recalled: “I started out reading the speech, and I read it down to a point … the audience response was wonderful that day…. And all of a sudden this thing came to me that … I’d used many times before.... ‘I have a dream.’ And I just felt that I wanted to use it here … I used it, and at that point I just turned aside from the manuscript altogether. I didn’t come back to it” (King, 29 November 1963).

The following day in the  New York Times,  James Reston wrote: “Dr. King touched all the themes of the day, only better than anybody else. He was full of the symbolism of Lincoln and Gandhi, and the cadences of the Bible. He was both militant and sad, and he sent the crowd away feeling that the long journey had been worthwhile” (Reston, “‘I Have a Dream …’”).

Carey to King, 7 June 1955, in  Papers  2:560–561.

Hansen,  The Dream,  2003.

King, Address at the Freedom Rally in Cobo Hall, in  A Call to Conscience , ed. Carson and Shepard, 2001.

King, “I Have a Dream,” Address Delivered at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, in  A Call to Conscience , ed. Carson and Shepard, 2001.

King, Interview by Donald H. Smith, 29 November 1963,  DHSTR-WHi .

King, “The Negro and the American Dream,” Excerpt from Address at the Annual Freedom Mass Meeting of the North Carolina State Conference of Branches of the NAACP, 25 September 1960, in  Papers  5:508–511.

King, “A Realistic Look at the Question of Progress in the Area of Race Relations,” Address Delivered at St. Louis Freedom Rally, 10 April 1957, in  Papers  4:167–179.

King, Unfulfilled Hopes, 5 April 1959, in  Papers  6:359–367.

James Reston, “‘I Have a Dream…’: Peroration by Dr. King Sums Up a Day the Capital Will Remember,”  New York Times , 29 August 1963.

HISTORIC ARTICLE

Aug 28, 1963 ce: martin luther king jr. gives "i have a dream" speech.

On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington, a large gathering of civil rights protesters in Washington, D.C., United States.

Social Studies, Civics, U.S. History

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On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr., took the podium at the March on Washington  and addressed the gathered crowd, which numbered 200,000 people or more. His speech became famous for its recurring phrase “I have a dream.” He imagined a future in which “the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners" could "sit down together at the table of brotherhood,” a future in which his four children are judged not "by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." King's moving speech became a central part of his legacy. King was born in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, in 1929. Like his father and grandfather, King studied theology and became a Baptist  pastor . In 1957, he was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference ( SCLC ), which became a leading civil rights organization. Under King's leadership, the SCLC promoted nonviolent resistance to segregation, often in the form of marches and boycotts. In his campaign for racial equality, King gave hundreds of speeches, and was arrested more than 20 times. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 for his "nonviolent struggle for civil rights ." On April 4, 1968, King was shot and killed while standing on a balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.

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A Summary and Analysis of Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘I Have a Dream’ is one of the greatest speeches in American history. Delivered by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-68) in Washington D.C. in 1963, the speech is a powerful rallying cry for racial equality and for a fairer and equal world in which African Americans will be as free as white Americans.

If you’ve ever stayed up till the small hours working on a presentation you’re due to give the next day, tearing your hair out as you try to find the right words, you can take solace in the fact that as great an orator as Martin Luther King did the same with one of the most memorable speeches ever delivered.

He reportedly stayed up until 4am the night before he was due to give his ‘I Have a Dream’, writing it out in longhand. You can read the speech in full here .

‘I Have a Dream’: background

The occasion for King’s speech was the march on Washington , which saw some 210,000 African American men, women, and children gather at the Washington Monument in August 1963, before marching to the Lincoln Memorial.

They were marching for several reasons, including jobs (many of them were out of work), but the main reason was freedom: King and many other Civil Rights leaders sought to remove segregation of black and white Americans and to ensure black Americans were treated the same as white Americans.

1963 was the centenary of the Emancipation Proclamation , in which then US President Abraham Lincoln (1809-65) had freed the African slaves in the United States in 1863. But a century on from the abolition of slavery, King points out, black Americans still are not free in many respects.

‘I Have a Dream’: summary

King begins his speech by reminding his audience that it’s a century, or ‘five score years’, since that ‘great American’ Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This ensured the freedom of the African slaves, but Black Americans are still not free, King points out, because of racial segregation and discrimination.

America is a wealthy country, and yet many Black Americans live in poverty. It is as if the Black American is an exile in his own land. King likens the gathering in Washington to cashing a cheque: in other words, claiming money that is due to be paid.

Next, King praises the ‘magnificent words’ of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence . King compares these documents to a promissory note, because they contain the promise that all men, including Black men, will be guaranteed what the Declaration of Independence calls ‘inalienable rights’: namely, ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’.

King asserts that America in the 1960s has ‘defaulted’ on this promissory note: in other words, it has refused to pay up. King calls it a ‘sacred obligation’, but America as a nation is like someone who has written someone else a cheque that has bounced and the money owed remains to be paid. But it is not because the money isn’t there: America, being a land of opportunity, has enough ‘funds’ to ensure everyone is prosperous enough.

King urges America to rise out of the ‘valley’ of segregation to the ‘sunlit path of racial justice’. He uses the word ‘brotherhood’ to refer to all Americans, since all men and women are God’s children. He also repeatedly emphasises the urgency of the moment. This is not some brief moment of anger but a necessary new start for America. However, King cautions his audience not to give way to bitterness and hatred, but to fight for justice in the right manner, with dignity and discipline.

Physical violence and militancy are to be avoided. King recognises that many white Americans who are also poor and marginalised feel a kinship with the Civil Rights movement, so all Americans should join together in the cause. Police brutality against Black Americans must be eradicated, as must racial discrimination in hotels and restaurants. States which forbid Black Americans from voting must change their laws.

Martin Luther King then comes to the most famous part of his speech, in which he uses the phrase ‘I have a dream’ to begin successive sentences (a rhetorical device known as anaphora ). King outlines the form that his dream, or ambition or wish for a better America, takes.

His dream, he tells his audience, is ‘deeply rooted’ in the American Dream: that notion that anybody, regardless of their background, can become prosperous and successful in the United States. King once again reminds his listeners of the opening words of the Declaration of Independence: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.’

In his dream of a better future, King sees the descendants of former Black slaves and the descendants of former slave owners united, sitting and eating together. He has a dream that one day his children will live in a country where they are judged not by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.

Even in Mississippi and Alabama, states which are riven by racial injustice and hatred, people of all races will live together in harmony. King then broadens his dream out into ‘our hope’: a collective aspiration and endeavour. King then quotes the patriotic American song ‘ My Country, ’Tis of Thee ’, which describes America as a ‘sweet land of liberty’.

King uses anaphora again, repeating the phrase ‘let freedom ring’ several times in succession to suggest how jubilant America will be on the day that such freedoms are ensured. And when this happens, Americans will be able to join together and be closer to the day when they can sing a traditional African-American hymn : ‘Free at last. Free at last. Thank God almighty, we are free at last.’

‘I Have a Dream’: analysis

Although Martin Luther King’s speech has become known by the repeated four-word phrase ‘I Have a Dream’, which emphasises the personal nature of his vision, his speech is actually about a collective dream for a better and more equal America which is not only shared by many Black Americans but by anyone who identifies with their fight against racial injustice, segregation, and discrimination.

Nevertheless, in working from ‘I have a dream’ to a different four-word phrase, ‘this is our hope’. The shift is natural and yet it is a rhetorical masterstroke, since the vision of a better nation which King has set out as a very personal, sincere dream is thus telescoped into a universal and collective struggle for freedom.

What’s more, in moving from ‘dream’ to a different noun, ‘hope’, King suggests that what might be dismissed as an idealistic ambition is actually something that is both possible and achievable. No sooner has the dream gathered momentum than it becomes a more concrete ‘hope’.

In his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, King was doing more than alluding to Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Proclamation one hundred years earlier. The opening words to his speech, ‘Five score years ago’, allude to a specific speech Lincoln himself had made a century before: the Gettysburg Address .

In that speech, delivered at the Soldiers’ National Cemetery (now known as Gettysburg National Cemetery) in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in November 1863, Lincoln had urged his listeners to continue in the fight for freedom, envisioning the day when all Americans – including Black slaves – would be free. His speech famously begins with the words: ‘Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.’

‘Four score and seven years’ is eighty-seven years, which takes us back from 1863 to 1776, the year of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. So, Martin Luther King’s allusion to the words of Lincoln’s historic speech do two things: they call back to Lincoln’s speech but also, by extension, to the founding of the United States almost two centuries before. Although Lincoln and the American Civil War represented progress in the cause to make all Americans free regardless of their ethnicity, King makes it clear in ‘I Have a Dream’ that there is still some way to go.

In the last analysis, King’s speech is a rhetorically clever and emotionally powerful call to use non-violent protest to oppose racial injustice, segregation, and discrimination, but also to ensure that all Americans are lifted out of poverty and degradation.

But most of all, King emphasises the collective endeavour that is necessary to bring about the world he wants his children to live in: the togetherness, the linking of hands, which is essential to make the dream a reality.

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15 Things You Might Not Know About the ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech

Fifty years ago today, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and it has since become one of the most famous orations in history. You’ve seen the clips and heard its most famous lines on countless occasions, but here are some of the things you probably didn’t know about how the speech was written, how it was delivered, and how it was   received. 

1. King had previously used his “dream” rhetoric before — “ many times before ,” as he acknowledged — in lesser-known   speeches.

2 . King may have taken the “dream” language from then-22-year-old Prathia Hall , who used it during a speech at the burnt remains of the Mount Olive Baptist Church in   1962. 

3. The night before the speech, King’s adviser Wyatt Walker suggested he not use any of that “dream” stuff during the March on Washington speech, calling it “trite” and   “cliche.”

4. King didn’t write the speech entirely by himself. The first draft was written by his advisers Stanley Levison and Clarence Jones, and the final speech included input from many   others. 

5. The day before, King and his advisers met to discuss the speech in the lobby of the Willard Hotel  because it would be harder to wiretap than a   suite. 

6. King was up until 4 a.m. the night before working on the   speech. 

7. The original draft was entitled “ Normalcy - Never Again” and didn’t contain any references to King’s   dreams. 

8. Before the speech, King told an aide that he wanted to deliver “ sort of a Gettysburg Address .” (Nailed it.)

9. King was the final speaker of the day, and some attendees — hot, tired, and anticipating a long trip home — had already left before he took the podium. Worst “gotta beat the traffic”   ever?

10. King put aside his prepared remarks and  extemporaneously  delved into the “dream” section of the speech after his friend Mahalia Jackson, a gospel singer, shouted out to him : “Tell ‘em about the dream,   Martin.”

11. King borrowed a long passage about freedom ringing from various mountains across the country (“ So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania! Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!…”)   from a 1952 speech by  Rev. Archibald Carey . 

12. Watching the speech from the White House, President Kennedy remarked either “ He’s damned good ” or “ That guy is really good .”

13. The head of the FBI ’s domestic intelligence division, William Sullivan, was not as  enamored . Two days later, he  wrote in a memo  that the speech solidified King “as the most dangerous Negro of the future in this Nation from the standpoint of communism, the Negro and national   security.” 

14. Many of the next day’s newspaper reporters overlooked not only the “dream” section of the speech, but even the speeches in general, focusing instead “ on the extraordinary spectacle of the march itself .” 

15. Though celebrated now, the speech had “ nearly vanished from public view ” by the time of King’s death in   1968.

This list has been updated with another thing you probably didn’t   know.

• dr. martin luther king jr.
• things that happened a while ago
• i have a dream

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22 Best Facts About I Have A Dream Speech

Written by Ethelda Swenson

Modified & Updated: 25 Jun 2024

Ever wondered what makes Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech so unforgettable? Yes, it's the powerful message of equality and freedom , but there's more to it than just the words. This iconic speech, delivered during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963, not only marked a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement but also showcased King's exceptional oratory skills. From its historical context to surprising facts about its delivery, there's a wealth of knowledge to uncover about this monumental address. Ready to dive into some of the most fascinating facts about the "I Have a Dream" speech? Let's get started and uncover the layers behind this historic oration that continues to inspire generations.

Key Takeaways:

• Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, delivered in 1963, became a powerful symbol of the Civil Rights Movement and inspired landmark legislation to end segregation and discrimination.
• King's vision of equality and justice, as expressed in the "I Have a Dream" speech, continues to educate and inspire new generations, reminding society of the ongoing struggle for equality and justice.

The Origin of "I Have a Dream"

Martin Luther King Jr.'s iconic "I Have a Dream" speech was delivered during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. Standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial, King shared his vision of a future where all individuals would be judged by their character, not the color of their skin.

The speech was not originally titled "I Have a Dream." This phrase became the most memorable part of the address but was improvised by King during the latter part of his delivery.

King had used the "I have a dream" theme before, in speeches in Detroit and North Carolina. The Washington speech was not its first appearance, but certainly its most famous one.

The Impact on Society

King's words resonated across the United States and the world, becoming a rallying cry for the Civil Rights Movement and a key moment in American history.

Over 250,000 people attended the March on Washington, making it one of the largest political rallies for human rights in U.S. history.

The speech played a significant role in helping to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, landmark pieces of legislation that aimed to end segregation and discrimination against African Americans.

Memorable Quotes from the Speech

King's speech is filled with powerful and memorable quotes that continue to inspire people today.

"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." This line encapsulates the central message of the speech.

"Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado!" King's speech ended with a series of statements envisioning freedom ringing across various parts of the United States, symbolizing a united nation.

The Speech's Composition

The creation and delivery of the "I Have a Dream" speech were influenced by several factors and individuals.

King was advised by his closest aides not to use the "I have a dream" phrase again, fearing it was becoming clichéd. However, singer Mahalia Jackson , present at the event, reportedly shouted, "Tell them about the dream, Martin!" prompting King to deviate from his prepared notes.

The speech was drafted with the assistance of several individuals, including Clarence Jones and Stanley Levison, who helped King shape his thoughts and ideas into the powerful words delivered that day.

Legacy and Recognition

The "I Have a Dream" speech has left a lasting legacy on American society and the global fight for civil rights.

The speech is considered one of the greatest speeches in American history, often studied in schools and universities around the world for its rhetorical brilliance and moral force.

In 2002, the Library of Congress honored King's delivered speech by adding it to the United States National Recording Registry.

The location where King delivered the speech, in front of the Lincoln Memorial, now features an inscription marking the spot, serving as a permanent reminder of this pivotal moment in history.

Despite its fame, the full speech was under copyright protection, limiting its broadcast on television or radio in its entirety for many years. This copyright is held by the King Estate.

Global Influence

King's vision of equality and justice resonated beyond the borders of the United States, influencing civil rights movements around the world.

The speech has been translated into numerous languages and is celebrated globally as a symbol of the fight against oppression and inequality.

Leaders and activists from various countries have cited King's speech as an inspiration for their own struggles for civil rights and social justice.

Educational Impact

The "I Have a Dream" speech continues to educate and inspire new generations about the values of tolerance, equality, and nonviolent protest.

Schools across the United States and around the world teach the speech, using it as a tool to discuss civil rights, social justice, and the power of eloquent rhetoric.

Many educational resources, including books, documentaries, and online materials, have been developed to help students understand the context and significance of King's words.

The Speech Today

Decades after it was delivered, King's dream remains a beacon of hope for millions, reminding society of the ongoing struggle for equality and justice.

Annual commemorations of the March on Washington and King's speech highlight the progress made since 1963 and the work that still needs to be done.

The speech is often referenced in discussions about racial equality and civil rights, serving as a powerful reminder of King's vision and the enduring fight against injustice.

Public figures, including politicians, celebrities, and activists, frequently quote King's speech to inspire action and change in various social and political contexts.

In recent years, the speech has gained renewed attention in light of global movements advocating for racial justice and equality, proving its timeless relevance.

Digital platforms and social media have played a significant role in keeping King's message alive, allowing for the widespread sharing and discussion of his vision.

Despite the challenges that remain, King's dream of a world where individuals are judged by their character rather than their skin color continues to inspire hope and drive efforts toward a more equitable society.

A Final Look at a Historic Masterpiece

Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech stands as a monumental achievement in the fight for civil rights. Its powerful words and emotional depth continue to inspire generations, advocating for equality, freedom, and justice. This speech, delivered with such passion and eloquence, encapsulates a pivotal moment in history, highlighting the struggle and the hope for a better future. As we reflect on these 22 fascinating facts, we gain a deeper appreciation for the context, the challenges, and the enduring legacy of King's words. They remind us of the ongoing journey toward social justice and the importance of keeping the dream alive. Let's carry forward the spirit of unity and determination that King so brilliantly conveyed on that summer day in 1963.

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Martin Luther King, Jr., was a Baptist minister and social rights activist in the United States in the 1950s and ’60s. He was a leader of the American civil rights movement . He organized a number of peaceful protests as head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference , including the March on Washington in 1963. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, and, at the time, he was the youngest person to have done so. Learn more.

Martin Luther King, Jr., is known for his contributions to the American civil rights movement in the 1960s. His most famous work is his “ I Have a Dream ” speech, delivered in 1963, in which he spoke of his dream of a United States that is void of segregation and racism. King also advocated for nonviolent methods of protest, and he organized and staged countless marches and boycotts.

Martin Luther King, Jr., influenced people around the world. He advocated for peaceful approaches to some of society’s biggest problems. He organized a number of marches and protests and was a key figure in the American civil rights movement . He was instrumental in the Memphis sanitation workers’ strike , the Montgomery bus boycott , and the March on Washington . The holiday honoring King is often celebrated as the MLK Day of Service, a reflection of his legacy of addressing social problems through collective action.

Martin Luther King, Jr., grew up as the middle child of Michael (later Martin Luther) King, Sr., and Alberta Williams King. His father was the minister of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta—the same church where Martin Luther King, Jr., would eventually minister. In 1953 King married Coretta Scott , and the two had four children: Yolanda, Martin Luther III, Dexter Scott, and Bernice.

Martin Luther King, Jr., was standing on a motel balcony in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, when he was shot by James Earl Ray . An hour later, King died at St. Joseph’s hospital. His death sparked riots across the country. In the United States he is memorialized on the third Monday of January every year— Martin Luther King, Jr., Day , which was first observed as a federal holiday in 1986.

Recent News

Martin Luther King, Jr. (born January 15, 1929, Atlanta, Georgia , U.S.—died April 4, 1968, Memphis , Tennessee) was a Baptist minister and social activist who led the civil rights movement in the United States from the mid-1950s until his death by assassination in 1968. His leadership was fundamental to that movement’s success in ending the legal segregation of African Americans in the South and other parts of the United States. King rose to national prominence as head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference , which promoted nonviolent tactics , such as the massive March on Washington (1963), to achieve civil rights . He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.

King came from a comfortable middle-class family steeped in the tradition of the Southern Black ministry: both his father and maternal grandfather were Baptist preachers. His parents were college-educated, and King’s father had succeeded his father-in-law as pastor of the prestigious Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta . The family lived on Auburn Avenue, otherwise known as “Sweet Auburn,” the bustling “Black Wall Street,” home to some of the country’s largest and most prosperous Black businesses and Black churches in the years before the civil rights movement. Young Martin received a solid education and grew up in a loving extended family .

This secure upbringing, however, did not prevent King from experiencing the prejudices then common in the South . He never forgot the time when, at about age six, one of his white playmates announced that his parents would no longer allow him to play with King, because the children were now attending segregated schools. Dearest to King in these early years was his maternal grandmother, whose death in 1941 left him shaken and unstable. Upset because he had learned of her fatal heart attack while attending a parade without his parents’ permission, the 12-year-old King attempted suicide by jumping from a second-story window.

In 1944, at age 15, King entered Morehouse College in Atlanta under a special wartime program intended to boost enrollment by admitting promising high-school students like King. Before beginning college, however, King spent the summer on a tobacco farm in Connecticut; it was his first extended stay away from home and his first substantial experience of race relations outside the segregated South. He was shocked by how peacefully the races mixed in the North. “Negroes and whites go [to] the same church,” he noted in a letter to his parents. “I never [thought] that a person of my race could eat anywhere.” This summer experience in the North only deepened King’s growing hatred of racial segregation .

At Morehouse, King favored studies in medicine and law, but these were eclipsed in his senior year by a decision to enter the ministry, as his father had urged. King’s mentor at Morehouse was the college president , Benjamin Mays , a social gospel activist whose rich oratory and progressive ideas had left an indelible imprint on King’s father. Committed to fighting racial inequality, Mays accused the African American community of complacency in the face of oppression, and he prodded the Black church into social action by criticizing its emphasis on the hereafter instead of the here and now; it was a call to service that was not lost on the teenage King. He graduated from Morehouse in 1948.

King spent the next three years at Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester , Pennsylvania, where he became acquainted with Mohandas Gandhi ’s philosophy of nonviolence as well as with the thought of contemporary Protestant theologians. He earned a bachelor of divinity degree in 1951. Renowned for his oratorical skills, King was elected president of Crozer’s student body, which was composed almost exclusively of white students. As a professor at Crozer wrote in a letter of recommendation for King, “The fact that with our student body largely Southern in constitution a colored man should be elected to and be popular [in] such a position is in itself no mean recommendation.” From Crozer, King went to Boston University , where, in seeking a firm foundation for his own theological and ethical inclinations, he studied man’s relationship to God and received a doctorate (1955) for a dissertation titled “A Comparison of the Conceptions of God in the Thinking of Paul Tillich and Henry Nelson Wieman.”

Watch CBS News

The dream marches on: Looking back on MLK's historic 1963 speech

By Charles M. Blow

August 27, 2023 / 10:30 AM EDT / CBS News

Tomorrow marks the anniversary of a speech truly for the ages. Our commentary is from columnist Charles Blow of The New York Times:

Sixty years ago, on August 28, 1963, the centennial year of the Emancipation Proclamation,  an estimated 250,000 people descended on Washington, D.C., for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

That day, Martin Luther King, Jr. took the stage and delivered one of the greatest speeches of his life: his "I Have a Dream" speech :

"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."

It was a beautiful speech. It doesn't so much demand as it encourages.

It is a great American speech, perfect for America's limited appetite for addressing America's inequities, both racial and economic. It focuses more on the interpersonal and less on the systemic and structural.

King would later say that he needed to confess that dream that he had that day had at many points turned into a nightmare.

In 1967, years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, King would say in a television interview that, after much soul-searching, he had come to see that "some of the old optimism was a little superficial, and now it must be tempered with a solid realism."

King explained in the interview, that the movement had evolved from a struggle for decency to a struggle for genuine equality.

In his "The Other America" speech delivered at Stanford University, King homed in on structural intransigence on the race issue, declaring that true integration "is not merely a romantic or aesthetic something where you merely add color to a still predominantly white power structure."

The night before he was assassinated, King underscored his evolving emphasis on structures, saying to a crowd in Memphis , "All we say to America is, 'Be true to what you said on paper.'"

As we remember the March on Washington and honor King, we must acknowledge that there is no way to do justice to the man or the movement without accepting their growth and evolution, even when they challenge and discomfort.

      For more info:

• Charles M. Blow, The New York Times

       Story produced by Robbyn McFadden. Editor: Carol Ross.

       See also:

• Guardian of history: MLK's "I have a dream speech" lives on ("Sunday Morning")
• MLK's daughter on "I Have a Dream" speech, pressure of being icon's child ("CBS This Morning")
• Thousands commemorate 60th anniversary of the March on Washington

      More from Charles M. Blow: 

• On Tyre Nichols' death, and America's shame
• On "The Slap" as a cultural Rorschach test
• How the killings of two Black sons ignited social justice movements
• On when the media gives a platform to hate
• Memories of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre
• On the Derek Chauvin trial: "This time ... history would not be repeated"
• On the greatest threat to our democracy: White supremacy
• On race and the power held by police
• Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
• Martin Luther King

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The Little-Known History Behind Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have A Dream’ Speech

When he took the podium to deliver the "i have a dream" speech in washington, d.c. on august 28, 1963, martin luther king wasn't even going to utter that immortal line — then fate interceded..

On August 27, 1963 — the night before one of U.S. history’s most momentous demonstrations — Martin Luther King Jr. and his colleagues set up shop in Washington, D.C.’s Willard Hotel, where they made some final preparations for King’s “I Have a Dream” speech that was to be delivered the next day.

“Don’t use the lines about ‘I have a dream’,” adviser Wyatt Walker told King, according to The Guardian . “It’s trite, it’s cliche. You’ve used it too many times already.”

AFP/Getty Images Martin Luther King Jr. waves to supporters from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963 upon delivering his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech.

King had indeed used the line before: once at a Detroit rally and again at a Chicago fundraiser. This speech, to be broadcast on all three television networks and thus a much wider audience, had to be different, his advisers said.

“I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.” An excerpt from Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic 'I Have A Dream' speech.

To King’s advisers, not going with the “I have a dream” rhetoric also made sense given the March on Washington’s schedule. Originally, planners allotted the speakers five minutes each, with King speaking in the middle for that same length of time. One of King’s advisers, attorney and speechwriter Clarence Jones, pushed for an alternative arrangement the night before — unwittingly helping to set the stage for a historical speech by giving King more time with which he could tell people about his dream.

“I said you run the risk…that after he speaks a lot of the people at the march will get up and leave,” Jones told WTOP .

National Archives Martin Luther King Jr. giving his famous “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington, D.C. 1963.

Instead, Jones recommended that King speak at the end of the event — and for the longest amount of time. After an evening of constant back and forth, King agreed. Before he retired to his bedroom, Jones handed King the speech for his review.

“One hundred years [after the Emancipation Proclamation] the life of the Negro is still badly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.”

It was, Jones later recounted, “a summary of what we had discussed before” that he had “simply put…into textual form in case he wanted to use that to reference in putting his speech together.”

Document in hand, King bade his colleagues adieu. “I am now going upstairs to my room to counsel with my Lord,” King said. “I will see you all tomorrow.”

At 4 a.m., the story goes that King gave the text of what would become the “I Have a Dream” speech to his aides for print and distribution. Apparently abiding by Walker’s recommendation, the “I have a dream” line did not appear in the text at all.

King rose to fame as a spiritual leader and unifier of black Americans in the 1950s. His role as president in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, as well as leading organized protests, established him as a reliable leader.

Fighting For The Dream

Before King could deliver a speech like “I Have a Dream” at an event as historic as the March on Washington, he and his followers had endured a long road filled with struggle.

Many of the civil rights campaigns organized by King or his compatriots in the preceding years, like the 1961 Freedom Rides or the 1963 Birmingham Campaign, saw participants viciously beaten. But their struggle was beginning to garner more and more attention and support.

The Freedom Rides, for example, led the Interstate Commerce Commission to rule that segregation on buses and in stations was no longer legal . Meanwhile, televised reports on the Birmingham Campaign allowed otherwise shielded Americans to witness just how brutal the struggle for civil rights was.

“There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, ‘When will you be satisfied?’ We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of unspeakable horrors of police brutality.”

It was during this same period, one in which King wrote his famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail” during the campaign in that city, that he decided to begin working toward another high-profile event that would aid his cause.

With help from Bayard Rustin, a veteran of organizing large-scale events such as this, the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was prepared by summer 1963.

The goals were simple and concise: desegregated public schools and accommodations, a redress of constitutional rights violations, and an expansion of the federal works program that would train novice employees.

“We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we’ve come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.”

When the day finally came — and artists such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez united the crowds in cheerful celebration — nobody could’ve anticipated just how many people would actually show up in solidarity.

The Inside Story Of The “I Have A Dream” Speech

AFP/Getty Images More than 200,000 civil rights supporters gather at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on August 28, 1963.

The March on Washington defied all expectations. Organizers planned for 100,000 people to occupy the National Mall that day; instead, around 250,000 people showed up to demand civil and economic rights. King appeared 16th on the official program — just before the benediction and pledge.

“This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy.”

When King’s time came to speak, he approached the podium with one critical figure behind him: singer and activist Mahalia Jackson. According to Jones, King considered her the “Queen of Gospel” because she was someone whom he would turn to when things got rough. “When Martin would get low…he would track Mahalia down, wherever she was, and call her on the phone,” Jones wrote in Behind the Dream , a book about the speech.

As King spoke, he initially kept very close to the script. About midway through, King paused and looked out toward the crowd. That’s when Jackson — there to sing before and after King’s address — cried out to King, “Tell them about the dream, Martin. Tell them about the dream.”

Wikimedia Commons Mahalia Jackson performing in 1957.

King responded almost reflexively to Jackson — some said his physical posture changed after Jackson’s call — and to those who understood their relationship, this wasn’t exactly surprising. It was “one of the world’s greatest gospel singers shouting out to one of the world’s greatest Baptist preachers,” Jones told the New Orleans Times-Picayune . “Anybody else who would yell at him, he probably would’ve ignored it. He didn’t ignore Mahalia Jackson.”

“This sweltering summer of the Negro’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality — 1963 is not an end but a beginning.”

Indeed, video footage shows King push his notes aside and opt for a more free-flowing style not unlike his sermonizing. “I turned to somebody standing next to me and I said, ‘These people don’t know it, but they’re about to go to church’,” Jones said.

After an extended pause punctuated by Jackson’s call, King would make history on the spot and deliver the “I Have a Dream speech” as we know it today. “So even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow,” King said extemporaneously, “I still have a dream.”

The Enduring Legacy Of King’s “I Have A Dream” Speech

While King had used such language in speeches before, he had never uttered the words “I have a dream” in front of such a large audience before. In fact, he had never spoken in front of this kind of audience before.

“The overwhelming majority of people in America, white people particularly, had never heard or seen Martin Luther King Jr. speak before,” Jones said.

“You had television pictures and the voice of Martin Luther King rebroadcast as part of the evening news in the top 100 television markets in the country. So, when the nation saw and heard this person speaking, they had as delayed reaction as I had when [the speech] was given. I was mesmerized.”

Not everyone was as mesmerized as Jones, however. While president John F. Kennedy remarked, “He’s damned good, damned good,” others thought the speech fell a bit flat.

“We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protests to degenerate into physical violence.”

“I thought it was a good speech,” civil rights activist John Lewis, who addressed the march earlier that day, said. “But it was not nearly as powerful as many I had heard him make. As he moved towards his final words, it seemed that he, too, could sense that he was falling short. He hadn’t locked into that power he so often found.”

Wikimedia Commons Expectations for attendance were set at 100,000 people, but more than twice that showed up to voice their support.

Nor did much of the nation really “lock in” to the power of King’s message. In the years that followed his speech and culminated in his 1968 assassination, King suffered a number of setbacks. Though historic triumphs like the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 and 1968 lay ahead, King faced increasing criticism for positions like opposition to the Vietnam War.

For many, right or wrong, the “I Have a Dream” speech remains the high-water mark of King’s career. That said, it wasn’t instantly regarded as historic in the way that we might think today.

“There was no reason to believe that King’s speech would one day come to be seen as a defining moment for his career and for the civil rights movement as a whole,” said The Dream author Drew Hansen.

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

In fact, as historians note, it wasn’t until King’s April 1968 assassination that the public “rediscovered” the speech, which became “one of those things that we look to when we want to know what America means,” Hansen said.

And to think, had it not been for an assertive speechwriter and the sudden cry of a gospel singer, Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” might have never have even come to fruition at all.

Next, discover ten fascinating things you never knew about Martin Luther King Jr. Then, read all about the death of Martin Luther King Jr.

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5 Things to Know: Surprising Facts About Martin Luther King Jr.

Did you know that Martin Luther King Jr’s famous, “I Have a Dream” speech was partially improvised and that the iconic phrase was left out of the original draft?

While King had used the line in several speeches in the months prior to the March on Washington on August 28, 1963, a few of his advisors questioned its use and kept it out of the original drafts of the speech.  While delivering his address to the nation, King was encouraged by his friend and legendary gospel singer, Mahalia Jackson to “tell them about the dream, Martin.” King departed from 4-minute prepared remarks to deliver one of the most famous and influential speeches of the 20th century. 

In August, the National Museum of African American History and Culture will display  an original copy of King’s closing speech  in the “A Changing America” exhibition. The three-page speech, on loan from Villanova University, was carried to the lectern on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial by King and entirely omits the phrase “I Have a Dream.” In honor of this newest temporary acquisition, here are five more facts about the life and work of King.

Martin Luther King Jr. and Martin Luther King Sr. standing at a pulpit in Ebenezer Baptist Church.

1. Martin Luther King Jr. was named after Protestant reformer Martin Luther. 

In 1934, King’s father, a respected Atlanta pastor known then by his birth name of Michael King Sr., embarked on a religious journey around the world. The senior King traveled to Rome, Tunisia, Egypt, Jerusalem, Bethlehem before arriving in Berlin to attend the Baptist World Alliance meeting. The trip to Germany, which occurred only one year after Adolf Hitler became chancellor, would have a profound effect on him. As he toured, the senior King gained a great respect for German monk and theologian Martin Luther, whose 95 Theses challenged the Catholic Church and ultimately split western Christianity. 

Upon his return state-side, Martin Luther King Sr. changed his and his five-year-old son’s names in honor of the Protestant reformation leader. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birth certificate would reflect this change on July 23, 1957, when it was officially revised. 

Statue in front of Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel on Morehouse Campus in Atlanta, Georgia

2. King entered college when he was 15-years-old 

King skipped two grades and entered college at the age of 15. He was admitted to Morehouse College in 1944 and graduated in 1948 with a B.A. in Sociology at the age of 19. The Morehouse president, Dr. Benjamin E. Mays, became an inspirational figure in King’s life.

King continued his education at Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania. Despite receiving a C grade in a public speaking class, he was elected student body president and graduated valedictorian of his class in 1951. He enrolled in Boston University’s doctoral program and was awarded his Ph.D. at the age of 25. While in Boston, King met Coretta Scott and became a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc . 

Martin Luther King Jr. is Arrested for Loitering Outside of a Courtroom where his Friend Ralph Abernathy is Appearing for a Trial, Montgomery, Alabama.

3. King was arrested 29 times

His charges (many of which were dropped) ranged from civil disobedience to traffic violations. See more on his arrests at  The King Institute .

Sometimes a law is just on its face and unjust in its application. Martin Luther King Jr. In His "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"

Dr. Emil A. Naclerio stands at the bedside of Martin Luther King Jr. in Harlem Hospital, September 21st after a 3 hour operation to remove a knife from his chest. 

4. King survived an assassination attempt a decade before his death

On September 20, 1958, King was at a Blumstein’s department store in Harlem for a book signing when a young woman slipped past the line of people to approach him. The woman, named Izola Ware Curry , asked if he was really Martin Luther King Jr. and after he replied “yes,” she thrust a seven-inch letter opener into his chest. Curry claims she had been after him for five years believing he had ties to the Communist Party.

The stab wound narrowly missed King’s heart and he underwent emergency surgeries that lasted hours. King would later issue a statement  affirming his nonviolent beliefs and stated he had no malice feelings towards his attacker.

5. After his death, the King family filed a civil case against the government and won

On December 8, 1999, twelve jurors reached a unanimous decision that King’s death was a result of a conspiracy . The trial took place in Memphis, TN, and included four weeks of testimony and over 70 witnesses. The jury was convinced by the evidence and reached a verdict after only an hour of deliberation. Overwhelming evidence showed James Earl Ray was not the shooter but was set up to take the blame. After the evidence showed Ray did not pull the trigger, local, state and federal U.S government agencies, and the Mafia were to blame.

The King family was awarded $100, which they donated to charity. To them, it was never about the money; they just wanted the truth out, and for justice to be served. Established in 1968 by Mrs. Coretta Scott King, The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change  has been a global destination, resource center and community institution for over a quarter century. 

This post was originally written by Shannon C., Social Media Volunteer, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

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Español NEW I Have a Dream facts for kids " I Have a Dream " is the name of a speech Martin Luther King, Jr. gave on August 28, 1963 while standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. . In his speech, he spoke of his wish for the future. His wish was that people of different races could live together peacefully in the United States . The speech was given to over 200,000 supporters. He spoke of the discrimination that the black men have faced even though they were to be treated as equals after the great Abraham Lincoln signed the momentous decree; the Emancipation Proclamation . The speech is very famous. It has been called by many- the best speech given in the 20th century . Original copy of the speech Images for kids. The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was partly intended to demonstrate mass support for the civil rights legislation proposed by President Kennedy in June. Martin Luther King and other leaders therefore agreed to keep their speeches calm, also, to avoid provoking the civil disobedience which had become the hallmark of the Civil Rights Movement. King originally designed his speech as a homage to Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address , timed to correspond with the 100-year centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation . Among the most quoted lines of the speech include "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. I have a dream today!" According to U.S. Representative John Lewis , who also spoke that day as the president of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee , "Dr. King had the power, the ability, and the capacity to transform those steps on the Lincoln Memorial into a monumental area that will forever be recognized. By speaking the way he did, he educated, he inspired, he informed not just the people there, but people throughout America and unborn generations." In the wake of the speech and march, King was named Man of the Year by TIME magazine for 1963, and in 1964, he was the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Peace Prize . The full speech did not appear in writing until August 1983, some 15 years after King's death, when a transcript was published in The Washington Post . In 2002, the Library of Congress honored the speech by adding it to the United States National Recording Registry. In 2003, the National Park Service dedicated an inscribed marble pedestal to commemorate the location of King's speech at the Lincoln Memorial. The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial was dedicated in 2011. The centerpiece for the memorial is based on a line from King's "I Have A Dream" speech: "Out of a mountain of despair, a stone of hope." A 30 feet (9.1 m)-high relief of King named the "Stone of Hope" stands past two other pieces of granite that symbolize the "mountain of despair." On August 28, 2013, thousands gathered on the mall in Washington D.C. where King made his historic speech to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the occasion. In attendance were former U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter , and incumbent President Barack Obama , who addressed the crowd and spoke on the significance of the event. Many of King's family were in attendance. On April 20, 2016, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew announced that the U.S. $5 bill, which has featured the Lincoln Memorial on its back, would undergo a redesign prior to 2020. Lew said that a portrait of Lincoln would remain on the front of the bill, but the back would be redesigned to depict various historical events that have occurred at the memorial, including an image from King's speech. As King waved goodbye to the audience, he handed George Raveling the original typewritten "I Have a Dream" speech. Raveling, an All-American Villanova Wildcats college basketball player, had volunteered as a security guard for the event and was on the podium with King at that moment. Raveling still has custody of the original copy and has been offered as high as $3,000,000 for it, but claims to have no intention of selling it. King at the Civil Rights March in Washington, D.C. The location on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial from which King delivered the speech is commemorated with this inscription Then President Barack Obama , First Lady Michelle Obama , and former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton walk past President Lincoln's statue to participate in the 2013 50th anniversary ceremony of the historic March on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 's "I Have a Dream" speech This page was last modified on 9 June 2024, at 15:23. Suggest an edit . History…listed Freedom’s Trailblazer: 10 Interesting Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. Welcome to our latest blog post, where we’ll dive into 10 fascinating facts about Martin Luther King Jr. that go beyond the widely celebrated “I Have a Dream” speech and his leadership role in the American Civil Rights Movement. While many are familiar with these monumental aspects of his life, Dr. King was a complex and multi-dimensional individual with a rich history that extends beyond his most well-known achievements. These lesser-known facts about Martin Luther King Jr. provide a more comprehensive look at the man who shaped and inspired a nation’s quest for equality and justice. From his early educational triumphs to his global influence, each fact we’ll uncover adds a new layer to our understanding of this iconic figure. Did you know that King was an exceptional student who started college at the age of 15? Or that he deeply admired Mahatma Gandhi’s principles of nonviolence? Whether you’re a history buff or someone simply curious about the extraordinary life of Dr. King, stay tuned as we explore these eye-opening details that contribute to the larger-than-life legacy he left behind. 10 Facts About Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Kicking off our list with perhaps one of the most iconic moments in American history, we have Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Its placement as the first item on our list is no accident—this monumental speech not only captivated a nation but also became a defining moment in the Civil Rights Movement, cementing King’s legacy as a visionary leader. 1. “I Have a Dream” speech Certainly! Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The event took place on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., and drew an estimated 250,000 people. The speech, famous for its eloquent advocacy for racial equality and harmony, became a hallmark of the Civil Rights Movement. One of the interesting facts about Martin Luther King Jr. is that he improvised the most famous portion of the speech, the “I Have a Dream” segment, inspired by the energy of the crowd. Originally, that part was not included in his written draft. The speech was about 17 minutes long, but its impact has been everlasting, encapsulating King’s vision for a more unified and equitable America. It has since been celebrated, analyzed, and quoted extensively, marking it as one of the most significant speeches in American history. 2. Youngest Nobel Laureate One of the interesting facts about Martin Luther King Jr. is that he became the youngest person ever to receive the Nobel Peace Prize at age 35. He was honored with this prestigious award on December 10, 1964, in Oslo, Norway, for his exceptional efforts in combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance. The Nobel Committee recognized King’s leadership in fostering civil rights advancements without resorting to violence, thereby making a profound impact not only in the United States but around the world. The prize included a monetary award, which King donated entirely to furthering the Civil Rights Movement. This remarkable achievement highlighted King’s global influence as a proponent of peace and equality, and it remains an enduring testament to his legacy. 3. Jail Time Arrests and jail time were an unfortunate but significant part of Martin Luther King Jr.’s journey toward racial equality. Martin Luther King Jr. faced nearly 30 arrests, most notably in Birmingham, Alabama, in April 1963. During this stint in jail, he wrote his famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” scrawled on the margins of a newspaper. The letter served as a compelling rebuttal to criticism from white clergy and laid out the moral case for civil disobedience in the fight against segregation and racial injustice. Far from diminishing his cause, King’s numerous arrests drew national attention to the Civil Rights Movement, emphasizing the sacrifices he and many others were willing to make in the name of justice and equality. 4. Montgomery Bus Boycott Certainly! Martin Luther King Jr. gained national prominence through his pivotal role in the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which lasted from December 5, 1955, to December 20, 1956. Sparked by Rosa Parks’ refusal to surrender her seat to a white passenger, the boycott aimed to challenge racial segregation on public transportation in Montgomery, Alabama. At just 26 years old, King led the nonviolent protest as the president of the Montgomery Improvement Association, coordinating carpools, encouraging community solidarity, and facing numerous threats to his life. His inspiring oratory and strategic leadership energized the movement, and the boycott culminated in a Supreme Court ruling that segregation on public buses was unconstitutional. The success of this protest served as a crucial turning point in the Civil Rights Movement and cemented King’s status as one of its most influential leaders. 5. Nonviolent Inspiration Martin Luther King Jr. was a steadfast advocate for nonviolent protest as the means to achieve social change, particularly during the Civil Rights Movement. Inspired by the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi and rooted in his own deep Christian beliefs, King believed that nonviolence was a tactic and a philosophy for achieving racial equality and justice. Gandhi’s concept of “satyagraha,” or nonviolent resistance, profoundly influenced King, who even visited India in 1959 to study Gandhi’s principles firsthand. King also drew inspiration from the American transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau, particularly his essay “Civil Disobedience,” which argues for the moral necessity of breaking unjust laws. Through iconic protests like the Montgomery Bus Boycott mentioned previously, the Birmingham Campaign, and the March on Washington, King put his principles of nonviolence into action, striving to elevate the conscience of the nation and bring attention to the plight of African Americans. 6. Assassination and Holiday Martin Luther King Jr. was tragically assassinated on April 4, 1968, at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. He was in the city to support a sanitation workers’ strike and was standing on the motel’s balcony when James Earl Ray fatally shot him. King’s death sent shockwaves throughout the United States and the world, sparking riots in various American cities and leading to a period of national mourning. In the years following his assassination, efforts were undertaken to commemorate his life and contributions to civil rights and equity. After much advocacy, including campaigns by his widow Coretta Scott King, President Ronald Reagan finally signed a federal holiday in his honor into law in 1983. Known as Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the holiday is observed on the third Monday of January each year, close to King’s birthday on January 15. The holiday serves as a day of remembrance for King’s profound impact on America and a day of service, encouraging people to emulate his commitment to improving the community and the world. 7. Education Martin Luther King Jr.’s educational journey was nothing short of remarkable and serves as a testament to his intellectual prowess. One of the most striking aspects of his academic career is that he skipped two grades in high school, allowing him to enroll at Morehouse College at the astonishingly young age of 15. At Morehouse, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology, and he then went on to attend Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, where he graduated as class valedictorian with a Bachelor of Divinity degree. But King’s educational pursuits didn’t end there; he moved to Boston to continue his studies, ultimately earning a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from Boston University in 1955. This rigorous academic background shaped his theological and philosophical perspectives and provided him with the intellectual foundation that would be crucial in his leadership roles during the Civil Rights Movement. 8. Opposed the Vietnam War Certainly! Martin Luther King Jr.’s opposition to the Vietnam War marked a significant evolution in his activism, extending his fight for civil rights into the arena of anti-war advocacy. Initially hesitant to speak out against the war due to concerns about alienating supporters in the government, King broke his silence in a pivotal moment with his “Beyond Vietnam” speech, delivered at New York City’s Riverside Church on April 4, 1967, exactly one year before his assassination. In the speech, King criticized the U.S. government for prioritizing military spending over social programs and challenged the moral underpinnings of American involvement in Vietnam. He argued that the war perpetuated the evils of racism, poverty, and militarism, diverting funds and focus from domestic issues. This public stance was highly controversial at the time, earning him criticism from both the mainstream media and some civil rights leaders, who felt that it diluted the focus on racial equality. Despite the backlash, King’s anti-war stance solidified his commitment to nonviolence and equity, underscoring the interconnectedness of civil rights and peace activism. 9. FBI Surveillance The FBI’s surveillance of Martin Luther King Jr. is a dark chapter in American history, highlighting the extent to which the government sought to undermine King’s efforts in the Civil Rights Movement. Authorized by then-FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and largely conducted under the COINTELPRO program (Counter Intelligence Program), the FBI began wiretapping King’s home and offices in 1963. Ostensibly aimed at uncovering ties to communists, the surveillance quickly expanded into a broader campaign to discredit King and disrupt his leadership. Agents eavesdropped on private conversations, sent anonymous letters to King attempting to blackmail him, and even tried to disrupt his receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize. These covert actions were invasive and designed to undermine King’s personal life and public image, despite the lack of substantial evidence to validate the accusations against him. The surveillance remains a disturbing testament to governmental agencies’ lengths to stifle the Civil Rights Movement and tarnish the reputation of one of its most iconic leaders. 10. Family Legacy Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy continues to be carried forward by his family, who have actively participated in advocating for racial equality. His wife, Coretta Scott King, played a pivotal role in this endeavor by dedicating herself to extending her husband’s civil rights work after his tragic assassination. She was instrumental in campaigning for the establishment of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a federal holiday, an effort that came to fruition in 1983 when President Ronald Reagan signed it into law. In addition to Coretta’s tireless work, the couple’s children have also been involved in activism, tackling various social issues that range from voting rights to LGBTQ+ equality. This ongoing commitment by the King family serves as a powerful testament to the enduring impact of Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and ideals, illustrating how his vision for a more equitable society remains a family—and national—endeavor. Biography: Interesting Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. Date of Birth: January 15, 1929 Place of Birth: Atlanta, Georgia, United States Date of Death: April 4, 1968 Profession: Civil Rights Leader, Minister Key Achievements: Led the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955-1956), resulting in the desegregation of public transportation in Montgomery, Alabama. Delivered the iconic “I Have a Dream” speech during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (1963). Martin Luther King Jr. was a seminal American Civil Rights Movement figure. He championed nonviolent protest and was instrumental in achieving significant civil rights advancements, including the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. His work has had a lasting impact on the struggle for racial equality in the United States and inspired civil rights movements around the world. Wrap-up: Interesting Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. We hope you’ve enjoyed this enlightening journey through these interesting facts about Martin Luther King Jr. It’s essential to remember that King was not just an abstract figure in history books but a complex individual with dreams, struggles, and a relentless pursuit of justice. From his precocious entry into college at age 15 to his unparalleled contributions to the American Civil Rights Movement, each fact serves as a piece in the intricate mosaic that makes up his unforgettable legacy. The details of his education, his commitment to nonviolence, and even the adversities he faced, such as FBI surveillance, offer a well-rounded understanding of a man who profoundly changed the course of American history. In recounting these interesting facts about Martin Luther King Jr., we not only honor the man but also bring to light the multifaceted struggle for civil rights—an endeavor that did not start or end with him but was significantly shaped by his leadership. King’s life and mission continue to inspire current and future generations, urging us all to strive for a more equitable and just society. We hope this list has inspired you to delve deeper into this remarkable man’s life and take up your own role in the ongoing fight for justice. For more content on the topics of civil rights and nonviolent protest, check out my articles: 7 Great Women of the Suffrage Movement Moments in History: 10 Facts About MLK’s August 1963 “I Have a Dream” Speech Peaceful Maverick: 10 Interesting Facts About Mahatma Gandhi Thanks for reading! FAQs: Interesting Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. 1. who were dr. martin luther king jr.’s mentors. Martin Luther King Jr. was influenced and guided by several mentors throughout his life who played a crucial role in shaping his intellectual and moral framework. One of the most prominent mentors was Dr. Benjamin Mays, an educator, minister, and civil rights leader who was the president of Morehouse College when King was a student there. Mays is often credited with instilling in King the principles of equity and the importance of education for leadership. King was also deeply influenced by Mahatma Gandhi’s teachings, whose nonviolent resistance philosophy became a cornerstone of King’s own civil rights activism. While not a direct mentor in the traditional sense, Gandhi’s impact on King was significant. Additionally, theologians like Howard Thurman and Paul Tillich and civil rights figures like Bayard Rustin also served as guiding lights for King, providing him with a rich tapestry of ideas and strategies that he would later employ in his civil rights work. These mentors collectively contributed to the leader that Martin Luther King Jr. became, shaping not just his activism but also his worldview. 2. What awards did Martin Luther King Jr. receive for his work in the Civil Rights Movement? Martin Luther King Jr. was the recipient of numerous prestigious awards and honors that recognized his unparalleled contributions to the American Civil Rights Movement and his efforts for racial equality. Perhaps the most renowned of these accolades was the Nobel Peace Prize, which he received in 1964 at the age of 35, making him the youngest recipient of the award at the time. The award acknowledged his commitment to nonviolent resistance as a means to combat racial segregation and inequality. In addition to the Nobel Peace Prize, King was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter, a high civilian honor that serves as a testament to his lasting impact on American society. He was also posthumously honored with the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004, another significant civilian award. These major awards and multiple honorary degrees from various universities underscore the enduring importance and widespread recognition of Martin Luther King Jr.’s lifelong commitment to social justice and equality. 3. What books did Martin Luther King Jr. write? Martin Luther King Jr. was a profound orator and a compelling writer who authored several influential books that articulated his vision for civil rights and equity. Among his most notable works is “Stride Toward Freedom,” published in 1958, which offers a detailed account of the Montgomery Bus Boycott and serves as a blueprint for nonviolent activism. Another significant book, “Why We Can’t Wait,” published in 1964, discusses the urgent need for civil rights reform and contains the famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” which he wrote while incarcerated for his role in nonviolent protests. In 1967, King authored “Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?” where he outlined his ideas for the future of America, focusing on the need for economic justice alongside racial equality. His final book, “The Trumpet of Conscience,” was published posthumously and contains a collection of his last lectures, expressing his evolving views on international affairs and economic issues alongside his enduring commitment to civil rights. These seminal works have served as key texts in the civil rights movement, capturing the essence of King’s philosophy and strategies for achieving social change. References: Interesting Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr. | About Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (thekingcenter.org) Martin Luther King Jr. – Biography – NobelPrize.org Martin Luther King Jr. – Biography, Civil Rights Activist About Histicle Welcome to Histicle, your go-to source for history spun into captivating listicles! 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The best-laid plans are often better off ignored—at least that was the case with Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963. Widely regarded as one of the world’s most “transformative and influential” speeches alongside Abraham Lincoln ’s 1863 Gettysburg Address and Winston Churchill ’s 1940 “Blood, toil, tears and sweat” speech , the impact of King’s words that hot summer afternoon in Washington D.C. struck a chord with civil rights advocates near and far and became a powerful rallying cry. King’s speech added fuel to the ongoing movement for racial equality. Its impact helped pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 , outlawing racial segregation in the United States. But those four famous words almost didn’t make it into the speech. King wanted the speech to be “like the Gettysburg Address” Before he stepped up to the podium that day, King was already known on the national stage for his civil rights work. He had already been a leader in the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 and the Greensboro sit-in movement in 1960 and was known for his 1963 Letter from Birmingham Jail , where he was taken after a peaceful demonstration. The Baptist minister, who was also the head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, was known as a powerful orator, but the bulk of his audience had been within the Black community. Fellow civil rights activists A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin had reached out to him and other prominent figures in the movement to organize the march followed by three hours of speeches. The three major television networks at the time—ABC, CBS, and NBC—had all promised to cover the event, so King knew the stakes were high. Even though he was limited to five minutes, his goal was clear: To make a speech with impact on the nation “like the Gettysburg address.” He confided in a team of trusted advisors To carefully craft the right words, King turned to his inner circle. Stanley Levison and Clarence Jones, two of his advisers, wrote the first draft. “When it came to my speech drafts, [King] often acted like an interior designer,” Jones said, according to The Guardian . “I would deliver four strong walls, and he would use his God-given abilities to furnish the place so it felt like home.” Even though they knew the importance of the speech, they were only able to gather as a group at the Willard Hotel the evening before the speech. “We met in the lobby rather than in a suite, under the assumption that the lobby would be harder to wiretap,” Jones wrote in The Washington Post . “It was with this odd start, hiding in plain sight, that 12 hours before the March on Washington began, Martin gathered with a small group of advisers to hammer out the themes of his speech.” Even though King was happy with the draft, he had wanted to get as much input as possible. “So that evening he had a cross-section of advisers present to fill any blind spots,” Jones wrote. “Cleveland Robinson, Walter Fauntroy, Bernard Lee, Ralph Abernathy , Lawrence Reddick, and I joined him, along with Wyatt Walker and Bayard Rustin , who were in and out of our deliberations.” Of course, everyone had their own take, which became a challenge to juggle. “As we ate sandwiches, our suggestions tumbled out,” Jones remembers. “Cleve, Lawrence, and I saw the speech as an opportunity to stake an ideological and political marker in the debate over civil rights and segregation. Others were more inclined for Martin to deliver a sort of church sermon, steeped in parables and Bible quotes. Some, however, worried that biblical language would obfuscate the real message—reform of the legal system. And still others wanted Martin to direct his remarks to the students, Black and white, who would be marching that day.” “I have a dream” was originally cut from the speech The idea of the “dream” had actually been one that King long talked about, almost like a theme throughout his previous speeches. Walker had the strongest opinion: “Don’t use the lines about ‘I have a dream.’ It’s trite, it’s cliche. You’ve used it too many times already.” Respecting his view, the mention of the dream was cut from the speech. At 4 a.m., King finally went to bed. “I am now going upstairs to my room to counsel with my Lord,” he said, according to The Guardian . “I will see you all tomorrow.” “It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment” While everything was meticulously planned, the organizers still worried there might not be the turnout they hoped for. After all, they set a goal of 100,000 to attend the March on Washington. But on August 28—despite the heat in the nation’s capital, which reached 87 degrees Fahrenheit with uncomfortable humidity—people started showing up en masse. Among them were notable names: Josephine Baker , Marlon Brando , Harry Belafonte , Sammy Davis Jr. , James Garner , Charlton Heston, Paul Newman , and Sidney Poitier . “It was truly staggering. Estimates vary widely, depending on the agenda of who was keeping count, but those of us who were involved in planning the March put the number at a minimum of 250,000,” Jones wrote in his book Behind the Dream: The Making of the Speech that Transformed a Nation . “They showed up to connect with the Movement, to draw strength from the speakers and from each other.” By the time it was King’s turn, some people had already headed out because of the stifling heat. But nothing was holding him back from his moment on the national stage. “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation,” he first addressed the crowd. Then, much like the Lincoln speech he sought inspiration from that started “Four score and seven years ago,” King said “Five score years ago,” and highlighted the importance of the Emancipation Proclamation . “But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free,” he continued, before describing the state of African American life in the United States. Then he moved into the purpose of the march: “In a sense we’ve come to our nation’s capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, Black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” “It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment,” he continued, emphasizing why it was essential for imminent action. “And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.” A gospel singer prompted King to say “I have a dream” While his words were impactful, they didn’t have the tremendous punch he was hoping for. But then gospel singer Mahalia Jackson , who had sung “I’ve Been ’Buked and I’ve Been Scorned” and was close to King, instinctively shouted out, “Tell ’em about the dream, Martin.” Throwing the script out the window, he turned to his dream. “Even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream,” he started before launching into his most famous passage: “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 one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. 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. I have a dream today.” Building up a cadence that had the crowd engaged and enthused, he concluded: “And when this happens, when we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, 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 are free at last!’” King knew that by abandoning his manuscript, he created the strongest impact Looking back on the day, Jones notes a shift as soon King threw all the prepared remarks out the window: “When he was reading from his text, he stood like a lecturer. But from the moment he set that text aside, he took on the stance of a Baptist preacher.” And that was the kind of messaging America needed to hear. Even King looked back on all the long hours preparing and realized that nothing resonated more than reading a crowd and trusting his instinct. “I started out reading the speech, and I read it down to a point,” helater said. “The audience response was wonderful that day… and all of a sudden this thing came to me that… I’d used many times before… ‘I have a dream.’ And I just felt that I wanted to use it here… I used it, and at that point I just turned aside from the manuscript altogether. I didn’t come back to it.” You Might Also Like Nicole Richie’s Surprising Adoption Story The Story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Her Mother Queen Camilla's Life in Photos History | Today in History: Martin Luther King delivers… Share this:. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on X (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Restaurants, Food and Drink Entertainment Immigration Sports Betting History | Today in History: Martin Luther King delivers ‘I Have a Dream’ speech Today in history: On Aug. 28, 1963, during the March on Washington, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech before an estimated 250,000 people in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Also on this date: In 1845, the first issue of “Scientific American” magazine was published; it remains the oldest continuously published magazine in the United States. In 1862, the Second Battle of Bull Run began in Prince William County, Virginia, during the Civil War; the Union army retreated two days later after suffering 14,000 casualties. In 1898, pharmacist Caleb Bradham of New Bern, North Carolina changed the name of the carbonated beverage he’d created five years earlier from “Brad’s Drink” to “Pepsi-Cola.” In 1955, Emmett Till, a Black teenager from Chicago, was abducted from his uncle’s home in Money, Mississippi, by two white men after he had allegedly whistled at a white woman four days prior; he was found brutally slain three days later. In 1957, U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond (D-S.C.) began what remains the longest speaking filibuster in Senate history (24 hours and 18 minutes) in an effort to stall the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. In 1968, police and anti-war demonstrators clashed in the streets of Chicago as the Democratic National Convention nominated Hubert H. Humphrey for president. In 1988, 70 people were killed when three Italian Air Force stunt planes collided during an air show at the U.S. Air Base in Ramstein, West Germany. In 2005, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin ordered a mandatory evacuation as Hurricane Katrina approached the city. In 2013, a military jury sentenced Maj. Nidal Hasan to death for the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood that claimed 13 lives and left 30 people injured. In 2016, six scientists completed a yearlong Mars simulation on the big island of Hawaii, where they emerged after living in a dome in near isolation on Mauna Loa. Today’s Birthdays: Former Defense Secretary William S. Cohen is 84. Actor Ken Jenkins (TV: “Scrubs”) is 84. Former MLB manager and player Lou Piniella  is 81. Former MLB pitcher Ron Guidry is 74. Former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove is 72. Artist Ai Weiwei is 67. Actor Daniel Stern is 67. Olympic gold medal figure skater Scott Hamilton is 66. Actor Jennifer Coolidge is 63. Film director David Fincher is 62. Country singer Shania Twain is 59. “Pokemon” creator Satoshi Tajiri is 59. Actor Billy Boyd is 56. Actor Jack Black is 55. Hockey Hall of Famer Pierre Turgeon is 55. Actor Jason Priestley is 55. Technology executive Sheryl Sandberg is 55. Olympic gold medal swimmer Janet Evans is 53. Actor Carly Pope is 43. Country singer Jake Owen is 43. Country singer LeAnn Rimes is 42. Rock singer Florence Welch (Florence and the Machine) is 38. Actor Quvenzhane Wallis is 21. More in History History | Today in Sports History: Chicago Bears and the College All-Stars play History | Today in History: Diana, Princess of Wales, dies in car crash History | Today in Sports History: Ashley Martin becomes the first woman to play in a Division I football game History | Today in History: Shackelton’s Endurance crew rescued Trending nationally. Adnan Syed remains free after Maryland Supreme Court reinstates his convictions Is it too early for a flu shot? Do you really need a COVID booster? What we need to know about fall vaccines Wells Fargo worker’s body found in cubicle 4 days after clocking in Boar’s Head plant linked to deadly outbreak broke food safety rules dozens of times, records show Column: TV show cancellations are frustrating — but nothing new History Classics Your Profile Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window) Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window) Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window) Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window) Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window) This Day In History History Podcasts History Vault 10 Things You May Not Know About Martin Luther King Jr. By: Christopher Klein Updated: January 25, 2024 | Original: April 4, 2013 Baptist minister and social activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968) dedicated his life to the nonviolent struggle for justice in the United States. King's leadership played a pivotal role in ending entrenched segregation for Black Americans and to the creation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 . Read on to discover more facts about the life and legacy of the civil rights icon.  1. King's Birth Name Was Michael, Not Martin King was born Michael King Jr. on January 15, 1929. In 1934, however, his father, a pastor at Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, traveled to Germany and became inspired by the Protestant Reformation leader Martin Luther . As a result, King Sr. changed his own name as well as that of his five-year-old son. 2. King Entered College At the Age of 15 King was such a gifted student that he skipped grades nine and 12 before enrolling in 1944 at Morehouse College, the alma mater of his father and maternal grandfather. Although he was the son, grandson and great-grandson of Baptist ministers, King did not intend to follow the family vocation until Morehouse president Benjamin E. Mays, a noted theologian, convinced him otherwise. King was ordained before graduating college with a degree in sociology. 3. King Received His Doctorate in Systematic Theology After earning a divinity degree from Pennsylvania’s Crozer Theological Seminary, King attended graduate school at Boston University, where he received his Ph.D. degree in 1955. The title of his dissertation was “A Comparison of the Conceptions of God in the Thinking of Paul Tillich and Henry Nelson Wieman.” 4. King’s 'I Have a Dream' Speech Was Not His First at the Lincoln Memorial Six years before his iconic oration at the March on Washington , King was among the civil rights leaders who spoke in the shadow of the Great Emancipator during the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom on May 17, 1957. Before a crowd estimated at between 15,000 and 30,000, King delivered his first national address on the topic of voting rights. His speech, in which he urged America to “give us the ballot,” drew strong reviews and positioned him at the forefront of the civil rights leadership. 5. King Was Imprisoned Nearly 30 Times According to the King Center, the civil rights leader went to jail 29 times. He was arrested for acts of civil disobedience and on trumped-up charges, such as when he was jailed in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1956 for driving 30 miles per hour in a 25-mile-per-hour zone. 6. King Narrowly Escaped an Assassination Attempt a Decade Before His Death On September 20, 1958, King was in Harlem signing copies of his new book, Stride Toward Freedom , in Blumstein’s department store when he was approached by Izola Ware Curry. The woman asked if he was Martin Luther King Jr. After he said yes, Curry said, “I’ve been looking for you for five years,” and she plunged a seven-inch letter opener into his chest . The tip of the blade came to rest alongside his aorta, and King underwent hours of delicate emergency surgery. Surgeons later told King that just one sneeze could have punctured the aorta and killed him. From his hospital bed where he convalesced for weeks, King issued a statement affirming his nonviolent principles and saying he felt no ill will toward his mentally ill attacker. 7. King's Last Public Speech Foretold His Death King had come to Memphis in April 1968 to support the strike of the city’s Black garbage workers, and in a speech on the night before his assassination, he told an audience at Mason Temple Church: “Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now … I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land. And I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.” 8. Members of King's Family Did Not Believe James Earl Ray Acted Alone Ray, a career criminal, pled guilty to King’s assassination but later recanted. King’s son Dexter met publicly with Ray in 1997 and argued for the case to be reopened. King’s widow, Coretta, believed the Mafia and local, state and federal government agencies were deeply involved in the murder. She praised the result of a 1999 civil trial in which a Memphis jury decided the assassination was the result of a conspiracy and that Ray was set up to take the blame. A U.S. Department of Justice investigation released in 2000 reported no evidence of a conspiracy. 9. King's Mother Was Also Slain by a Bullet On June 30, 1974, as 69-year-old Alberta Williams King played the organ at a Sunday service inside Ebenezer Baptist Church, Marcus Wayne Chenault Jr. rose from the front pew, drew two pistols and began to fire shots. One of the bullets struck and killed King, who died steps from where her son had preached nonviolence. The deranged gunman said that Christians were his enemy and that although he had received divine instructions to kill King’s father, who was in the congregation, he killed King’s mother instead because she was closer. The shooting also left a church deacon dead. Chenault received a death penalty sentence that was later changed to life imprisonment, in part due to the King family’s opposition to capital punishment. 10. George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Cesar Chavez are the Only Other Americans to Have Had Their Birthdays Observed as a National Holiday In 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill that created a federal holiday to honor King. The holiday, first commemorated in 1986, is celebrated on the third Monday in January, close to the civil rights leader’s January 15 birthday. 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More details : Privacy Notice | Terms of Use | Contact Us 269 IMAGES On this day in 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his iconic “I Have a 20 Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. important facts about martin luther king jr speech i have a dream mlk-facts The 10 Most Influential Speeches of the 20th Century Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech Was About Racial Economic VIDEO 5 Fascinating facts About Martin Luther King Jr 3 Facts about Facts Martin Luther King Jr Facts about Martin Luther King jr 🫡||#facts #history#martinlutherkingjr Discover the inspiring life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with these amazing facts for kids Lesser Known MLK Facts You Should Know 📖 Facts about Martin Luther King Jr COMMENTS 7 Things You May Not Know About MLK's 'I Have a Dream' Speech Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech ranks among the most famous in history, but there are a few lesser‑known facts about the 1963 moment. 'I Have a Dream': 9 historical facts about MLK's speech and ... Some interesting facts about Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington in 1963. 10 fascinating facts about the "I Have A Dream" speech It was on this day in 1963 that Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his famous "I Have A Dream" speech as part of the March on Washington. So how much do you know about the speech and the events that led up to it? I Have a Dream I Have a Dream, the speech by civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., that was delivered on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. A call for equality and freedom, it became one of the defining moments of the civil rights movement and one of the most iconic speeches in American history. 7 Facts About Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' Speech On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his 17-minute "I Have a Dream" speech—an oratorical masterpiece that changed King's life, his movement, and the nation at large. MLK's I Have A Dream Speech Video & Text Watch & learn about the political & social backdrop to Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous 'I Have A Dream' speech and the rhetorical devices that helped its message. I Have a Dream I Have a Dream. " I Have a Dream " is a public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist and Baptist minister [2] Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. In the speech, King called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States. Read Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech in its entirety Monday marks Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Below is a transcript of his celebrated "I Have a Dream" speech, delivered on Aug. 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. NPR's Talk of the ... "I Have a Dream" Martin Luther King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech, delivered at the 28 August 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, synthesized portions of his previous sermons and speeches, with selected statements by other prominent public figures. Martin Luther King Jr. Gives "I Have a Dream" Speech On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., gave his "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington, a large gathering of civil rights protesters in Washington, D.C., United States. A Summary and Analysis of Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' Speech By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) 'I Have a Dream' is one of the greatest speeches in American history. Delivered by Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-68) in Washington D.C. in 1963, the speech is a powerful rallying cry for racial equality and for a fairer and equal world in which African Americans will be as… 15 Things You Might Not Know About the 'I Have a Dream' Speech Fifty years ago today, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and it has since become one of the most famous orations in ... 22 Best Facts About I Have A Dream Speech Key Takeaways: Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, delivered in 1963, became a powerful symbol of the Civil Rights Movement and inspired landmark legislation to end segregation and discrimination. King's vision of equality and justice, as expressed in the "I Have a Dream" speech, continues to educate and inspire new generations, reminding society of the ongoing struggle for ... Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was a visionary leader and advocate for equality who spearheaded the civil rights movement in America through nonviolent protests, inspiring lasting change and leaving an enduring legacy. The dream marches on: Looking back on MLK's historic 1963 speech On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his epic "I Have a Dream" speech. New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow reflects on the power of the speech, and on King's evolving views ... Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have A Dream' Speech And The Story Behind It Discover the history of the iconic "I Have A Dream" speech that Martin Luther King Jr. delivered during the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. This Day in History on August 28: Martin Luther King Jr. Delivers "I 1963: Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' Speech. Undoubtedly one of the most significant events in American history, August 28, 1963, saw Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. deliver his iconic 'I ... Quotes from 7 of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Most Notable Speeches Quotes from 7 of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Most Notable Speeches From 'I Have a Dream' to 'Beyond Vietnam,' revisit the words and messages of the legendary civil rights leader. 5 Things to Know: Surprising Facts About Martin Luther King Jr Did you know that Martin Luther King Jr's famous, "I Have a Dream" speech was partially improvised and that the iconic phrase was left out of the original draft? I Have a Dream facts for kids Kids Encyclopedia Facts. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivering his speech at the DC Civil Rights March. " I Have a Dream " is the name of a speech Martin Luther King, Jr. gave on August 28, 1963 while standing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.. In his speech, he spoke of his wish for the future. PDF Full text to the I Have A Dream speech by Dr. Martin Luther King Junior h we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "W. hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the ... 10 Must-Know Facts About Martin Luther King Jr. Discover 10 fascinating facts about Martin Luther King Jr. that go beyond his famous 'I Have a Dream' speech. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Famous Speech Almost Didn't Have ... The best-laid plans are often better off ignored—at least that was the case with Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech at the March on Washington from the steps of the Lincoln ... Martin Luther King Jr. ‑ Biography, Quotes & Legacy Martin Luther King Jr. was a social activist and Baptist minister who played a key role in the American Civil Rights Movement until his assassination in 1968. Today in History: Martin Luther King delivers 'I Have a Dream' speech On Aug. 28, 1963, during the March on Washington, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech before an estimated 250,000 people in front of the Lincoln Memorial in ... 10 Things You May Not Know About Martin Luther King Jr. Read on to discover more facts about the life and legacy of the civil rights icon. The Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Past Is Prologue In 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the keynote speech at the Rabbinical Assembly Convention at the hotel 10 days before he was assassinated. The Concord closed in 1998. assignment essay homework phd report resume review speech thesis