Here's Martin Luther King Jr.'s biography at the Nobel Prize site. It's interesting that he was the youngest-ever recipient of the Peace Prize.
We have a copy of The Dream that I haven't yet read. From the Amazon description:
Opening with an enthralling account of the August day in 1963 that saw 250,000 Americans converge at the March on Washington, The Dream delves into the fascinating and little-known history of King's speech. Hansen explores King's compositional strategies and techniques, and proceeds to a brilliant analysis of the "I Have a Dream" speech itself, examining it on various levels: as a political treatise, a work of poetry, and as a masterfully delivered and improvised sermon bursting with biblical language and imagery.In tracing the legacy of "I Have a Dream" since 1963, The Dream insightfully considers how King's incomparable speech "has slowly remade the American imagination," and led us closer to King's visionary goal of a redeemed America.
My parents were there; they were concerned about violence and left me at home. After they heard the speech and understood its significance, they came to regret it.
Posted by Linkmeister at January 16, 2006 01:49 PM | TrackBackReminds me of the West Wing episode where the President steps down. At the end the man takes his kid to the fence at the White House to have them witness the bloodless change of power.
I've only been to Washington DC once but made a point of going to stand on the marker of King's speech on the steps. And wept.
Too many Americans forget what it means to be a nation of law. There are daily reminders everywhere we look. But most certainly every 4 or 8 years.
Wish the current administration understood that.
Posted by: cynsmw at January 21, 2006 08:39 AM