EST shot Dexter Avenue Baptist Church; MSs African-Americans sitting in pews; MS of a young Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. speaking from pulpit. "One day after finishing school I was called to a little church down in Montgomery, Alabama. I started preaching there and things were going well in that church. It was a marvelous experience." (Panning TLS of lone rider on city bus; MS African-American woman riding bus (this is NOT Rosa Parks). TLSs city bus on route. MSs of African-Americans walking to work or school, using carpools, taking taxi cab operated by black drivers. INT shot empty city bus.) "One day, a year later, a lady by the name of Rosa Parks, decided that she wasn t going to take it. She stayed on the bus seat, you may not remember it, because its way back, now, several years, but it was the beginning of a movement."
MCU of Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. sermonizing, saying that eventually segregation in public transportation end. MSs of MLK under arrest after civil rights protest, being peacefully led towards paddy wagon by white police officers. "Eventually, segregation in public transportation will pass away, eventually. And I think that we should start now preparing for the inevitable. And let us when that moment comes, go into the situation that we confront with, a great deal of dignity, sanity and reasonableness."
MS of MLK at pulpit, referring to the U.S. Supreme Court's Nov. 13, 1956 ruling that declared segregation on buses as unconstitutional. "The decision rendered by the Supreme Court yesterday was a victory. It wasn t a victory for colored folk. No don t make that victory that small. It wasn t a victory for 55 Negros in Montgomery. It wasn t merely a victory for nearly 60 million negroes of America. That was a victory for justice and goodwill." MLK then declares the end of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. "Now what would be our mode of action in the light of this decision? I been thinking through this question very seriously. The Executive Board of the Montgomery Improvement Association recommends that the eleven month old protest against the city busses will be called off, and that the Negro citizens of Montgomery Alabama will return to the buses on a nonsegregated basis. (Applause and a MS of the audience) Are you ready for the question? (Audience responds with a yes) All in favor let it be known by standing on your feet. (Audience stands up) It seems it is carried unanimous."
MS of MLK wearing fedora and snazzy business suit, surrounded by supporters on sidewalk; Rev. King says the Montgomery bus boycott is right and Constitutional; he advocates non-violence and passive resistance. "We still feel that we are right. And that we stand within our constitutional rights in the protest. We still advocate nonviolent, passive resistance, and still determined to use the weapon of love."
Requires the express written consent of the King Estate in Atlanta. April 3, 1968, Memphis, Tennessee. Excerpt from "I've Been to the Mountaintop" CU Rev. Dr. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. speaking: "Brother, you may not be on strike, but either we go up together or we go down together."
(DO NOT LICENSE IMAGE OR AUDIO OF "I HAVE A DREAM" SPEECH WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN CONSENT FROM THE KING ESTATE) TLS U.S. Navy color guard (three African-American sailors) standing on steps of Lincoln Memorial w/ two American flags. MS black U.S. Marine in dress blue uniform drinking water (black man standing behind him holds canteen). MS Rev. Dr. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. speaking from steps of Lincoln Memorial: "I am happy to join w/ you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation." TLS African-Americans standing, applauding. MS Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. continues speech: "Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand, 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 captivity. But 100 years later, the Negro is still not free." LS/TLS/MSs audience listening to speech.
(DO NOT LICENSE IMAGE OR AUDIO OF "I HAVE A DREAM" SPEECH WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN CONSENT FROM THE KING ESTATE) LS Rev. Dr. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. delivering "I Have a Dream" speech from steps of Lincoln Memorial: "I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves & the sons of former slaveowners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering w/ the heat of injustice & oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom & justice. 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. I have a dream today. I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping w/ the words of interposition & nullification, will be transformed into a situation where little black boys & black girls will be able to join hands w/ little white boys & white girls as sisters & brothers. I have a dream today. I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill & mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, & the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, & all flesh shall see it together. 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."
(DO NOT LICENSE IMAGE OR AUDIO OF "I HAVE A DREAM" SPEECH WITHOUT EXPRESSED WRITTEN CONSENT FROM THE KING ESTATE) MS/TLS Rev. Dr. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. delivering "I Have a Dream" speech from steps of Lincoln Memorial: "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 a new meaning, My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring." And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of NY. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania! Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies! Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of CA! But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of GA! Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of TN! Let freedom ring from every hill and every molehill of MS. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. When we let 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 & white men, Jews & Gentiles, Protestants & 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!" C/As of audience listening.
LS picketers marching in Memphis, Tennessee, supporting 1300 striking African-American sanitation workers; MS Reverend MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. marching arm in arm with protesters; LS white police officers wearing gas masks, riot helmets & wielding billy clubs, keeping rabble in line on sidewalk; LS black people running along street, away from tear gas. CU Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking, delivering speech in Memphis, April 3, 1968 (excerpt of "Mountaintop" speech requires express written consent from the King estate in Atlanta): "I don't know what will happen now; we've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter w/ me now b/c I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life - longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over, and I've seen the Promised Land." FO/FI TLS/MSs Memphis police officers investigating crime scene at Lorraine Motel following assassination of MLK, Jr., April 4, 1968. Nationwide riots following death of MLK: shaky (but good) panning TLS police squad car driving along city street, night; panning shot crowd passing broken shop windows, night; LS large fire burning from city bldg, nite; MS National Guardsmen carrying wounded man, night; panning MS broken windows, steel gate outside Bostonian store; traveling shots black youth hauling looted goods, day; LS/TLSs police officers wearing gas masks, firing tear gas, day. TLS U.S. Senator ROBERT F. KENNEDY (D-NY) speaking to crowd in Indianapolis, Indiana, following MLK assassination, Aug 4 1968: "For those of you who are black & are tempted to be filled w/ hatred & distrust..." MSs widow CORETTA SCOTT KING & bereaved King family viewing open casket of Martin Luther King Jr during wake. High angle LS mule-driven funeral procession of MLK through streets of Atlanta, GA, Apr 9, 1968; h/a TLS Robert Kennedy (RFK, Bobby Kennedy) marching in funeral parade, wife ETHEL KENNEDY (Ethel Skakel Kennedy) walking behind him; MS DWIGHT EISENHOWER (Ike, Dwight D. Eisenhower) and RICHARD NIXON (Tricky Dick, Richard M. Nixon) marching in funerary parade, basketball star WILT CHAMBERLAIN (it appears that Lola Falana walks to his right) marching behind them. LS/TLSs mule-drawn funeral cortege through streets of Washington, DC.
Panning LSs enormous crowd; audio of a man introducing "the moral leader of our nation" Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. assumes podium. Various shots large crowd, statue of Abraham Lincoln at Lincoln Memorial. "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. [Applause] Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand 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 captivity. But one hundred years later, the Negro is still 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 an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize an shameful condition."
MS of white male hotel owner pouring hydrochloric acid into a pool where African-Americans are swimming. MS Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. speechifying about the weapon of non-violence. "And it is a message, which says that I am convinced; the most potent weapon available to oppressed people, as they struggle for freedom and justice is the weapon of nonviolence."
MS blacks & whites linked arm in arm during protest. MCU of MLK, wearing suit and fedora, standing on street, speaking about non-violent protest. "For several weeks now, we the Negro citizens of Montgomery, have been involved in a nonviolent protest against the injustices, which we have experienced on the buses for a number of years. This is a nonviolent protest we re depending on moral and spiritual forces using the method of passive resistance." C/As of a black family walking along sidewalk, black people crossing street. MS young black women singing in church.
MCU of Dr. King at press conference. "At which time the Chief said to us, that we had been released. In other words our fine had been paid. I said, Well chief, we want to serve this time. His only response then was, God knows Reverend, I don t want you in my jail. " MSs of Dr. King coming from police station after being released. "I m under orders to keep walking."
MSs of Dr. King speaking in Selma, Alabama. "I m here to tell you tonight, that the businessmen, the mayor of this city, the police commissioner of this city and everybody in the white power structure of this city, must take a responsibility for everything that Jim Clark does in the city. It s time for us to say to these men, that if you don t do something about it, we will have no alternative, but to engage in broader and more drastic forms of civil disobedience in order to bring the attention of a nation to this whole issue in Selma, Alabama."
MLK: "Now the other thing that we must see about this struggle is that by large it has been a nonviolent struggle." MSs of white police officers breaking up a lunch counter sit-in, shuttling African-American males away. "Let nobody make you feel that those who are engaged or who are engaging in the demonstration in communities all across the South are resulting to violence. These are few in number. For we ve come to see the power of nonviolence. We ve come to see that this method is not a weak method." MSs civil rights demonstrators, all black, under arrest, being hauled into paddy wagons, their placards taken away. "For it s the strong man who can stand up amid opposition, who can stand up amid violence being inflicted upon him and not retaliate with violence." (Applause) MSs white police officers using police attack dogs (German Shepherds) on demonstrators in Birmingham, 1963. "You see that this method has a way of disarming the opponent. It exposes his moral defenses, it weakens his morale and at the same time it works on his conscience and he does not know what to do. If he doesn t beat you, wonderful, if he beats you, you developed a quiet courage of accepting blows without retaliating." MS firefighters hooking fire hose to fire hydrant; TLSs demonstrators being hosed down. "If he doesn t put you in jail, wonderful. Nobody in his sense likes to go to jail, but if he puts you in jail, you go in that jail and transform it to a dungeon of shame, to a haven of freedom and human dignity." MSs demonstrators, including MLK, under arrest, being taken away by police. MS broken windshield of car. MS smashed sign for First Baptist Church; TLSs remains of building that was burned-down. "Even if he tries to kill you, you will develop the inner conviction, that there are some things so dear, some things so precious, some things so eternally true, that they re worth dieing for. And I submit to you that if a man has not discovered something that he will die for, he isn t fit to live." MSs police using attack dogs and force to break up demonstrations. MS young black men on stretcher being loaded into ambulance. MS three white cops forcing black women to ground during arrest procedure. MS two black women hugging. MS white cop striking young black man with butt of rifle. MSs black men carrying wounded man on stretcher to ambulance. "This method has brought wonders. As a result of the nonviolence Freedom Ride Movement segregation in public transportation has almost passed away, absolutely in the South. As a result of the sit in movement at lunch counters, more than 285 cities have now integrated their lunch counters in the South. I say to you, there s power in this method." MSs non-violent civil rights march under watch of the National Guard; both black and white marchers carrying signs. "And so if you want to help us in Alabama and Mississippi and over the South, do all that you can to get rid of the problem here, and then we also need your support in order to get the Civil Rights Bill, that the President is offering, passed. And as a reality, let s not fool ourselves this bill isn t going to get through if we don t put some work in it and some determined pressure. And this is what I ve said. That in order to get this bill through we got to rouse the conscience of a nation." TLS/MSs trains arriving in Washington DC for March on Washington, 1963: civil rights supporters disembark, board buses, make way to Washington Mall.
MS of Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. giving speech in church, saying that "I m here to tell you tonight, that the businessmen, the mayor of this city, the police commissioner of this city, and everybody in the white power structure of this city must take a responsibility for everything that Jim Clark does in this city. (Standing ovation, applause) "It s time for us to say to these men, that if you don t do something about it, we will have no alternative but to engage in broader and more drastic forms of civil disobedience in order to bring the attention of the nation of this whole issue in Selma, Alabama."
MCU of MLK speaking about the murder of a white pro-civil rights minister from Boston. "He was murdered by the irresponsibility of every politician from governors on down, who have fed his constituents a stale bread of hatred and the spoiled meat of racism. He was murdered by the timidity of a federal government that can spend millions dollars a day to keep troops in South Vietnam and cannot protect the lives of their own citizens seeking the right to vote."
Use of motion footage and/or audio of Dr. King delivering the I Have Been to the Mountaintop speech requires the express written consent of the King Estate in Atlanta. Excerpt from I HAVE BEEN TO THE MOUNTAIN TOP (aka I See the Promised Land) A FINAL ADDRESS, APRIL 3, 1968. Also contains much great footage of the civil rights movement. TLS/MSs of Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. boarding a twin engine prop plane bound for Memphis to help striking garbage workers. MSs MLK walking streets, talking to people, shaking hands, kissing cheeks; good CUs of MLK smiling and laughing. MSs of MLK and SCLC leaders in Chicago, being openly harassed by whites in opposition to desegregation of housing. MS of MLK delivering final speech: "Now, it doesn't matter, now. It really doesn't matter what happens now. I left Atlanta this morning, and as we got started on the plane, there were six of us. The pilot said over the public address system, 'We are sorry for the delay, but we have Dr. Martin Luther King on the plane. And to be sure that all of the bags were checked, and to be sure that nothing would be wrong with on the plane, we had to check out everything carefully. And we've had the plane protected and guarded all night.' And then I got into Memphis. And some began to say the threats, or talk about the threats that were out. What would happen to me from some of our sick white brothers? Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now, because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And 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 so 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!"
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: "In a sense we have 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 inalienable 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." (applause) But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have 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 quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children. 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. Nineteen sixty-three 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."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: "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. 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 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 a 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. 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."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: "I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of the 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." 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 a 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 there 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."
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: "This is our hope. This is the faith 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 a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring." And if America is to be a great nation this must become true. 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! 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 every molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And when this happens, when we let 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!'"
FO/FI on MCU of Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. speaks in reaction to the violence at the march: "We have no alternative but to keep moving with determination. We've gone to far now to turn back. And in a real sense we are moving and we cannot afford to stop because Alabama and because our nation has a date with destiny."
March on Selma, Alabama, March 21, 1965: MS of Rev. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR, "We re going to walk non-violently and peacefully, to let the nation and the world know, we are tired now. We ve lived with slavery and segregation 345 years. We ve waited a long time for freedom. We re trying to remind the nation of the urgency of the moment. Now is the time to make real promises of democracy. Now is the time." MSs of marchers picking up sleeping bags, belongings, beginning march; whites and blacks march arm in arm.
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. speaking at podium: "They go talking about these little levels of progress that we see here and there, and they say, you know you made great progress. Aren t you satisfied? No we re not satisfied. We will not be satisfied, as long as Negro boys and Negro girls are forced to live life without dignity and without respect. We will not be satisfied."
MS of MLK speaking to the press: "We will have to engage in these, acts and these nonviolent demonstrations in new forms in order to keep this issue before the conscience of the nation and this community."
MS of MLK at podium: "It seems that I can hear the God of history saying; that was not enough, but I was hungry and you fed me not, I was naked and you clothed me not, I was devoid of a decent sanitary house to live in and ye provided no shelter for me, and consequently you cannot enter the kingdom of greatness. If you do it on to the least of these my brethren, you do it unto me.
B&W MS of MLK speaking. "You re caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. And whatever affects one directly, effects all indirectly. For some strange reason I can never be what I ought to be, until you are what you ought to be. The rich man can never be what he ought to be, until the poor man is what he ought to be. John Donne thought it a hundred years ago and placed it in graphic terms, No man is an island, entire of itself, every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. And then he goes on toward the end to say, Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
COLOR shot of MLK speaking at rally: "And I oppose the war in Vietnam because I love America. I speak out against it not in anger, but with anxiety and sorrow in my heart, and above all with a passionate desire, to see our beloved country stand as the moral example of the world. I speak out against this war because I am disappointed with America. There can be no great disappointment where there is no great love."
B&W MCU of MLK speaking out against communism. "There has been some talk of communist infiltrating the pilgrimage. We do not welcome the support of the communist in this endeavor. We only urge and welcome the support of persons who believe in the Constitution of the United States."
MS of MLK saying, "For those who say to me, Stick to civil rights. I have another answer; that is that I fought too long and too hard, now, against segregated public accommodations, to end up segregating my moral concern. I m not going to do that. Others can so what they want to do. That s their business. If other civil rights leaders for various reasons refuse, or can t take a stand or have to go along with the administration, that s their business. But I must say tonight, that I know that justice is indivisible, injustice anywhere is a threat for justice everywhere."
CU MLK speaking to congregation: "Once more we must reaffirm the fact that violence & hatred are the attributes of a sick society & they must be cast into an unending limbo if we are going to rise to a great moral maturity & our health as a nation. So I stand before you today more convinced than ever that nonviolence is the answer, that violence is wrong whether it's violence of negroes against white people or violence of white people against negroes or violence of negroes against other negroes, all violence is wrong. It is immoral & it is impractical." Ahisma, Gandhian principles of non-violence.
Nice sideview CU Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. speaking to crowd, waiting for applause to subside. MS MLK smiling, walking from crowded podium at speaking engagement. MS/CUs Martin Luther King Jr. speaking at event held in church. "How long will prejudice blind the visions of men & drive bright eyed wisdom from her throne? When will wounded justice, lying prostrate on the streets of Selma & other streets of Alabama, be lifted from the dust of shame to reign supreme among the children of men? How long will justice be crucified & truth buried?" Edit. "We must keep moving with the faith that unmerited suffering is redemptive. We must keep moving w/ the faith that dogged yesterdays can be transformed into bright tomorrows. We must keep moving with the faith there can be a day right here in the Black Belt of Alabama, that all of God's children will be able to walk with dignity and self-respect." Edit. "Life for me ain't been no crystal staff. Life for none of us has been a crystal staff but we must keep moving. If you can't fly, run. If you can't run, walk. If you can't walk, crawl. But by all means, keep moving." CU/MS Martin Luther King Jr., RALPH ABERNATHY, & group of both white & black religious leaders holding hands, swaying, singing "We Shall Overcome" (verse about "We are not afraid") in church.
MLK continues to speak: "In order to say that we are determined, and in order to engage in a non-violent protest to keep this issue before the conscience of the nation." Fade to choir singing, "We shall Overcome". MSs of MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. and SCLC Civil Rights leaders leading the march on Washington. MSs marchers carrying placards. High angle LS of crowd at the Washington Mall, Washington Monument and reflecting pool.
Excerpts from Martin Luther King, Jr speech "Our God is Marching On" March 25, 1965. Shot of Alabama Ave. street sign; aerial of thousands marching; CU "military police" sign on jeep; King leads march; Montgomery road sign; more aerials; shot of folk singer JOAN BAEZ marching; CUs of MLK speaking, . "Last Sunday, more than eight thousand of us started on a mighty walk from Selma, Alabama." edit "They told us we wouldn t get here. And there were those who said that we would get here only over their dead bodies, (Well. Yes, sir. Talk) but all the world today knows that we are here and we are standing before the forces of power in the state of Alabama saying, 'We ain t goin let nobody turn us around.'" [Applause] edit "Today I want to tell the city of Selma, (Tell them, Doctor) today I want to say to the state of Alabama, (Yes, sir) today I want to say to the people of America and the nations of the world, that we are not about to turn around. (Yes, sir) We are on the move now. (Yes, sir) Yes, we are on the move and no wave of racism can stop us. (Yes, sir)" eidt "The burning of our churches will not deter us. (Yes, sir) The bombing of our homes will not dissuade us. (Yes, sir)" edit "The beating and killing of our clergymen and young people will not divert us." edit "The wanton release of their known murderers would not discourage us." edit "Like an idea whose time has come, (Yes, sir) not even the marching of mighty armies can halt us. (Yes, sir) We are moving to the land of freedom. (Yes, sir)" edit "I know you are asking today, 'How long will it take?' (Speak, sir) Somebody s asking, 'How long will prejudice blind the visions of men...'" edit "I come to say to you this afternoon, however difficult the moment, (Yes, sir) however frustrating the hour, it will not be long, (No sir) because "truth crushed to earth will rise again." (Yes, sir) How long? Not long, (Yes, sir) because "no lie can live forever." (Yes, sir) How long? Not long, (All right. How long) because "you shall reap what you sow." (Yes, sir) How long? (How long?) Not long: (Not long) Truth forever on the scaffold, (Speak) Wrong forever on the throne, (Yes, sir) Yet that scaffold sways the future, (Yes, sir) And, behind the dim unknown, Standeth God within the shadow, Keeping watch above his own. How long? Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. (Yes, sir) How long? Not long, (Not long) because: Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord; (Yes, sir) He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; (Yes) He has loosed the fateful lightning of his terrible swift sword; (Yes, sir) His truth is marching on. (Yes, sir) He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat; (Speak, sir) He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat. (That s right) O, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! Be jubilant my feet! Our God is marching on. (Yeah) Glory, hallelujah! (Yes, sir) Glory, hallelujah! (All right) Glory, hallelujah! Glory, hallelujah! His truth is marching on." [Applause]
