The Day I Met Dr. Martin Luther King
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(N.B: In the interests of clarity: this is not a seeded article but rather my own personal "sharing" a personal experience)
Photo: Jim Wallace’s striking coverage of a civil rights demonstration on Franklin Street on February 8, 1964.
Background: A Civil Rights demonstration in the state of North Carolina was a major event in the struggle:
The historic Greensboro sit-in sat a Woolworth's store:
The Greensboro sit-ins were a series of nonviolent protests in February to July 1960, primarily in the Woolworth store—now the International Civil Rights Center and Museum—in Greensboro, North Carolina, which led to the F. W. Woolworth Company department store chain removing its policy of racial segregation in the Southern United States.
While not the first sit-in of the civil rights movement, the Greensboro sit-ins were an instrumental action, and also the best-known sit-ins of the civil rights movement. They are considered a catalyst to the subsequent sit-in movement, in which 70,000 people participated. This sit-in was a contributing factor in the formation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.
A little later In the 60's I was a student (undergrad) at UNC (The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)..My first year was that of a fairly typical freshman-- much of my time was dedicated to trying to see how much beer I could drink in a single day, chasing girls... and try to see if I could get good grades without cracking a textbook
But things changed significantly-- the movement came to Chapel Hill. Every night there were marches on Franklin Street-- the main street in this (formerly) lovely college town. These were also accompanied by sit-ins in stores on Franklin Street and other nearby shopping areas.. I joined in the marches every evening . . .
Then came a big surprise-- Dr. King himself was scheduled to come to Chapel Hill! He was scheduled to speak at a rally at a "Negro" (IIRC Baptist) Church in Carrboro, a small town abutting Chapel Hill!
I arrived early in order to get a seat in one of the front pews. But the place was still fairly empty. In the front of the church several people were standing in a small circle around Dr. King: a few of our local Civil Rights leaders, and a few of Dr. King's associates. I was a little nervous about entering the circle (I was well-known by our local leaders, but wondering if it were appropriate to enter a small circle conversing with the great man himself. But I did, and joined in the conversation!
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Then came a big surprise-- Dr. King himself was scheduled to come to Chapel Hill! He was scheduled to speak at a rally at a "Negro" (IIRC Baptist) Church in Carrboro, a small town abutting Chapel Hill!
I arrived early in order to get a seat in one of the front pews. But the place was still fairly empty. In the front of the church several people were standing in a small circle around Dr. King: a few of our local Civil Rights leaders, and a few of Dr. King's associates. I was a little nervous about entering the circle (I was well-known by our local leaders, but wondering if it were appropriate to enter a small circle conversing with the great man himself. But I did, and joined in the conversation!
Who is Jim Wallace (photographer of many of these local events?):
Jim Wallace was one of several photographers on the ground during the civil rights struggle in Chapel Hill from 1961-1964, a movement led by local Black youth who attended the segregated Lincoln High School. A student at UNC at Chapel Hill, Jim was a photojournalist for the student newspaper, The Daily Tar Heel , which he describes as—at the time--particularly invested in calling out the injustice of segregation policies that prevented the as yet small number of Black students at UNC from walking across Franklin St. and sitting down to eat.
Jim gained unprecedented access to the struggle. As you can see in these images, he was able to shoot from within the garage of the jail, from the second story of the building that housed the jail, and from inside police barricades.
He credits this, on the one hand, to the Chief of the Police, William Blake, who was an avid reader of Gandhi and who Jim believed wanted an accurate picture of what was happening in Chapel Hill. On the other hand, Jim was a link between the Black leaders who sought media coverage (except for the DTH, little was forthcoming) and the police, who knew Jim knew where the next sit-in would be and followed him there. (See James Wallace, “Photojournalism and Its Role in Shaping and Preserving Local History,” Keynote for the MCJC Civil Rights in Chapel Hill Weekend, November 2012, and Hutchins Lecture, Center for the Study of the American South, LINK on Vimeo
Nice. Really nice!
This is a great story. Thank you for posting it.
Thanks glad you liked it!
I did, very much.
Great article, Krish.
I never had the chance to meet Dr. King but have always admired him.
Several years ago I posted quite a bit about my personal experiences marching in the south in the '60's as a long haired freaky person before I got into politics...
Didn't draw much interest back then either... but then that probably had more to do with my libertarian leanings than anything else... but I guess it is true for liberal leanings as well...
I don't know, he was a great man, a leader when we sorely needed one.... He'd be in his 90's today, and I would still march with him every day of the week and twice on sunday, but I guarantee you he wouldn't be a democrat, he couldn't be, not in todays democrat party....
I was right there with you until the last unnecessary sentence.
I could only agree by insisting that he would not be a Republican either.
Actually IMO opinion its pretty tacky to try and put a political spin on...everything!
A feeble attempt at derail.
Here's a rare article about an important even in American history...by someone who was actually there.(So in a way I'm not surprised one of the MAGA obsessed would try to derail the conversation.
The best advice: DO NOT FEED THE TROLLS!
Please don't fall for his sleazy manipulations-- do not argue with him. (Because his comment and there repleis are a transparent attempt to derail the discussion.
Nope he wouldn't be that I agree with 100%...
[removed]
You threw the cheap shot about the politics
of one of the most apolitical national figures we ever had.
Aren't you a big Britanica fan?
Was Martin Luther King, Jr., a Republican or a Democrat? | Britannica
I realize its tempting, (in the past I've done it myself) butplease do not turn this in a debate about politics. Why?
1. Because no one ever wins a political debate online. (Even though they think they do...)
2. And perhaps more importantly: the intent of that comment was to troll-- and attempt tp derail the conversation. (And on a social media site..the argument never ends)>
I have been on this site for many years...and every year i've been tempted to post this article. Now that I've finally gone through the effort (as it was lingago I had forgotten some details-- and researched to the point where i was satisfied it was all factual)...I"d really hate to seemy efforts mostly ignored by a trollish comments (and repleis) turning this into yet another political argument.
Not a particularly great fan of Britannica, outside of some small details it is essentially correct. he did try his damndest to keep his personal politics out of the movement and is what he counseled EVERYONE to do... What I know is wrong about it is the statement that
His commitment was to everyone, ALL Americans not just African Americans... That is a political statement about his work that came after he died... Why do you think most of the whites of all ages that marched with us disappeared after his death and jesse came on the scene...
What Dr King represented and everyone loved was lost in the politicizing of the movement... Neither side particularly liked him republican nor democrat cause he was uncontrollable, he would submit to no one... curry no favors, what was right was right and wrong was wrong.. in America in the '60's THAT was a breath of fresh air... And we loved him for it...
WE ALL lost when he was killed...
AS have I, I find it amazing that even today people on such a wide disparate view of politics today, both stood for the exact same thing 60 years ago.... I'm not trolling anything and if you feel that way I apologize, Dr King was apolitical It took me a long time to talk about my experiences as well and as you, I was surprised by the lack of interest as well...
You would think that such a great man who had such a profound impact on millions of young americans holds little interest in people today except for a passing remembrance on one day each year..
That man should be standing next to GW, Lincoln and TJ in the american pantheon of great men... I don't understand why he isn't...
he can't help himself...
I had a high school history teacher that had been involved in MLK's movement in the south a few years earlier prior to king's death. that began my political curiosity and interest in questioning the glaring contradictions in what I was taught about american ideals and reality.
Its pretty amazing how so many school systems teach such a distorted view of history. (And then that distorted view is supported by so many elected politicians).
Coverage of our history re; so many minority groups is either not mentioned-- or distorted. Yes, that's so true re: the omission of atrocities committed against African_Americans.
But in terms of the degree and extent of a cover-up, the history of what we did to American-Indians is probably the worst. In fact, its still one of the worst covered stories re: atrocities against any minority IMO.
Kudos to Kavika and a few other Newstalkers for bringing this to light here
(I won't list the names of everyone who contributed to that effort because if I do I'd probably leave someone out)
When I was 10-11 years old (or maybe even a bit younger) I wanted to go to Mississippi and join the Freedom Riders. Me, being a kid in L.A. The Civil Rights struggle was very influential in my formative years.
I also had thought of doing that. But good sense prevailed.
There were different ways to participate in the movement. And while effective, that was perhaps one of the most dangerous ways (Not just going into the South, but the deep South. The worst part in terms a opposition to the rule of law-- and deeply embeded hatreds.
In those days the most dangerous states were these 5: Mississippi and Alabama. Followed by South Carolina and Georgia. ((North Carolina would've been 5th, but at that time they had a relatively moderate Governor-- Terry Sanford.So I would've ranked Virginia as 5th.
The Freedom Riders went down to Mississippi...
And here's what happened:
On June 21, 1964, three young men disappeared near the town of Philadelphia, Mississippi. Michael (Mickey) Schwerner and James Chaney worked for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) in nearby Meridian; Andrew Goodman was one of the hundreds of college students from across the country who volunteered to work on voter registration, education, and Civil Rights as part of the 1964 Mississippi Summer Project. The three men believed their work was necessary, but also dangerous: Ku Klux Klan membership in Mississippi was soaring in 1964 -- with membership reaching more than 10,000. The Klan was prepared to use violence to fight the Civil Rights movement; on April 24 the group offered a demonstration of its power, staging 61 simultaneous cross burnings throughout the state.
Over the course of the summer of 1964, members of the Klan burned 20 black Mississippi churches. On June 16, Klan members targeted Neshoba County's Mt. Zion Baptist Church, where Schwerner had spent time working. Before burning the church, the Klan severely beat several people who had been attending a meeting there. Schwerner, however, was not there that day; he had gone to Oxford, Ohio, to train a group of Freedom Summer volunteers. Upon returning to Mississippi, Schwerner, Goodman and Chaney visited the charred remains of Mt. Zion. On the drive back to Meridian, their station wagon, known to law enforcement as a CORE vehicle, was stopped, and police arrested all three. Chaney, who had been driving, was charged with speeding, while Schwerner and Goodman were held for investigation. Neshoba County sheriff’s deputy Cecil Price escorted them to the Philadelphia jail around 4pm.
Despite the fact that the schedule of fines for speeding was posted on the wall, Price said the three men would have to remain in jail until the Justice of the Peace arrived to process the fine. Schwerner asked to make a phone call, but Price denied the request and left the jail. In Meridian, CORE staff began calling nearby jails and police stations, inquiring about the three men -- their standard procedure when organizers failed to return on time. Minnie Herring, the jailer’s wife, claimed there was no phone call on June 21, but CORE records show a call to the Philadelphia jail around 5:30pm.
Price returned a little after 10pm, collected Chaney’s speeding fine -- with no Justice of the Peace -- and told the three men to get out of the county. They were never seen alive again.
Yep and a lot of us were scared for our lives, but it didn't stop us did it...
For more details, and a follow up, here's a really incredible video...(much of the story starts not in Mississippi, but in a College in the New York City Borough of Queens).:
I was, of course, way too young to go anywhere, but I did start doing volunteer work in local political campaigns for a few years after that doing things teenagers could do, stuffing envelopes, helping get mailers out and that sort of thing. I would ride my bike to campaign headquarters and work for hours. I loved it.
If y'all have never seen the movie Mississippi Burning, I highly suggest it.
Went through my mind as soon as I saw that "Missing" poster.
Mine too.
I know the actor who Hackman grabbed by the balls. He once shared with me some funny off camera comments about that scene.
Great article Krish. I never knew about this event. It must have been a wonderful thing to be a student at Chapel Hill. Anyone there saw a bit of history!
At times it was wonderful-- being in the midst of history as it was being made! (Although at times it was scary.. In addition to MLK I met another leader-- a not so nice one. I had a confrontation with the Grand Dragon of the North Carolina KKK! (Who later put out a hit on me...which I narrowly escaped) A long and interesting experience...but its a fairly long story, saving it for another time!
I was also roughed up a bit by some other undergrads who apparently had different political views than I did...but it wasn't too bad (I think they were afraid that if they hurt me too badly & were found out they might be expelled).
A hit put out on you from the KKK. You lived a very interesting life, I've got to say. Would love to hear that story.
A hit put out on you from the KKK. You lived a very interesting life, I've got to say. Would love to hear that story.
Its a long story, don't have time now but will eventually getting around to explaining what happened. Only quick thinking on my part saved me from what might possibly been a horrendous fate (I keep thinking I might have ended up like Cheney, Goodwin and Schwerner-- although N Carolins was not nearly as dangerous as Mississippi). But while I was very idealistic, i was still young and foolish-- and used to take some big risks..
P.S: When I mentioned "quick thinking" on my part-- quick thinking in dangerous situations was not typical of me at the time, my positive reactions at the time were unusual. Perhaps just luck-- or possibly intervention by some "Higher Power". .. IDK.
What a wonderful memory to call your own!
No to be nosey, but do you remember the topic of conversation when you walked up and joined the group surrounding Dr. King?
Actually when I wrote this article I had intended to write something about that. But its been such a long time-- I actually don't remember much.
IIRC that was in 1963 -- if my math is correct, that was well over 50 years ago!!!
About the only thing I remember it was about was him bringing us up to date on the latest developments in the Civil Rights struggle, Dr. King's plans-- and also what our local leaders in Chapel Hill were doing and planning to do. Also informing him of ther details of our current situation. (At the time the town and the university were very mixed-- people from die-hard rascists...perhaps even some Klan supporters-- to progressives-- to dedicated civil rights activists.
Also unusual-- aside from the university campus, it was a relatively small town. The shops on Franklin Street (the main street separating the campus and the stores and restaurants)- strangely-- some were segregated and had "Whites only" signs-- other allowed all races! (Even the school administration had a variety of views...).
I did notice one unusual thing about Dr. King. He seemed to have some sort of great energy. And while it was a bit faint. I thought I noticed he was surrounded by a faint white light.
It was only the second time i had seen that around a person-- at the time i had no idea what it was.
(Many years later I learned what it was-- it was the human aura. And at that time I hadn't been trained to see them-- but I think the reason I did then was that they both had such strong auras. In the east they say that the Aura of The Buddha was so bright it could be seen for a hundred miles (Or kilometers, I forget which).
BTW, if you google anything mystical and land on Wikipedia their descriptions are generally inaccurate.
But I'm getting a little off topic here!
FWIW just did the math-- it was actually closer to 60 years.
How time doth fly when you're having fun!
Great article Krishna. When I was teaching English at a high school in Zhengzhou, we used Dr. King's "I had a dream" speech for an exercise in pronunciation. I believe that the significance of it rubbed off on the kids.
He has an amazing energy-- and you could tell he was "the real deal" Totally committed to a higher purpose...totally sincere.
As speaking as a former member of a hated group (yes-- I once actually used to be an English teacher!) IMO its an exceedingly well written speech. A classic.
I too am an alumnus of UNC Chapel Hill. I was on the wrestling team.
I wasn't there until years after Dr. King came to Chapel Hill.
I lived off campus. My next door neighbor, Howard Lee, became the first Black mayor of Chapel Hill. He was also the first Black Mayor of any predominately White city in the South.
While I was at UNC, Jesse Helms was a commentator at WRAL TV. He was an outspoken segregationist who later became a Senator. He filibustered the bill that made Martin Luther King Day a national holiday. When he was at WRAL Helms did an editorial every day on the Noon News. Helms always called Chapel Hill "Commie Hill". Two of my closest friends wrote for the Daily Tarheel (Editor and Associate Editor). We would always get together at 11:00 AM to smoke weed and prepare for Jesse's editorial. We took copious notes so we could eviscerate the bigotry he spewed. We would also hide the word "fuck" somewhere in every issue because it always made him go ballistic.
I was a jock back then (I'm just an athletic supporter now) and I played in pickup football games during the Sumer. I was fast so I played receiver/defensive back. One day Ricky Lanier showed up. Lanier was the first African American scholarship football player at UNC. He wanted to play so I said, "Sure we'd love to play ball with you, butt to keep it fair you can't play quarterback cause you'd crush us." He played wide receiver and scored a touchdown on the first play. He just out ran our defense on a fly pattern. The guys called a time out and told me I have to play him man-to-man because he so fast. Lanier made me look slow. After the game I told Ricky he should be a receiver to take advantage of his speed. Lanier became our best receiver.
When we played The Citadel our running back (Don McCauley) gained over 200 yards in the first quarter. We were leading 28-0 at the end of the first quarter so our second string started the second quarter. We had such a big lead at the end of the half that Dooley started Lanier at quarterback in the second half (Lanier had not played quarter back for a long time). Because of that game, Lanier still has the UNC record for most yards running from the quarterback position. He ran for 174 yards (in one half). He got those yards on passing plays where he would use his speed to avoid a sack and then he would zoom down the field. BTW, Ricky was extremely intelligent and later became a High School science teacher.
I love Carolina.
Wow-- amazing to meet a fellow Tarheel here!
(Actually we used to have a member on NT by the name of Wheel. He was from North Carolina. Don't remember if he said he ever attended UNC or not.
Don't remember Howard Lee, that was a while after I graduated.
But I do remember Jessie Helms-- in fact IIRC at the time I was there he was already spreading his hatred on WRAL!
Two of my closest friends wrote for the Daily Tarheel (Editor and Associate Editor).
I also had friends on the DTH staff! When I was there Joel Bulkley was editor. Was he editor when you were there? (Actually he had probably graduated by then and left Chapel Hill...although it was such a wonderful place many graduates decided to live there permanently.
For some reason I was never much of a sports fan.
Just googled him-- here's a review he wrote-- you may know some of this?
Game Changers - Dean Smith, Charlie Scott, And the Era That Transformed a Southern College Town -Art Chansky
Game Changers,” Dean Smith and Charlie Scott, by Art Chansky, UNC Press, 224 pp, $26.00
Joel Bulkley
Sportswriter Art Chansky has written four books on North Carolina basketball and Dean Smith. His latest isn’t a hard-care hoops book. It’s a history book, mixing an examination of the civil rights struggle in Chapel Hill in the 1960s with behind-the-scenes stories on the recruiting and college career of basketball star Charlie Scott, UNC’s first Afro-American scholarship player.
I was friendly with several on the DTH staff. One of my closest friends was Karen Parker (she was the first African American woman to be admitted to UNC).
I also ended up having several friends in the St Anthony Hall fraternity (but never pledged a fraternity myself).
The St. A's were mostly from prominent wealthy Northern WASP families. Very "upper crust'>
(It was said that the bottom 10% of the graduating classes from Andover, Exeter, etc-- who couldn't get into the Ivy Leagues-- went to UNC)/
It was a truly unique place.
The Southern Part of Heaven indeed!
Did you used to hang out at Harry's? (Was it still there when you were-- I hear its long gone).
Carolina Coffee Shop-- the hang-out for our pseudo-intellectuals-- they constantly played quiet baroque music
(Harry's was the preferred hangout for all the Hippies and Hippie wannabes)
I envy you. I would have loved to have heard him speak (in person) let alone meet him. Alas, I was only 3 when he died & growing up his name was not mentioned UNLESS it was to disparage him. It is tough to get away from the racism when your whole family are racists. I am just glad I did a lot of reading growing up and still do.
In a way I was quite lucky growing up. Most on my family were not racists-- in fact quite the opposite.
(Well, of course there were a few exceptions, but they were definitely in the minority).
And a few were actually political activists (I had an uncle who was in the Dutch Underground (anti-Nazi) in Holland during WWII! One grandfather a member of a rather Socialist Labour Union...also an activist. And a few others.
But I've have several friends who grew up in the most horrendous rascist families... obviously quite difficult for any intelligent kids...especially those with an inquiring mind.
So I can sympathize with them.
It was not the best. My father refused to let me watch Roots even though it was a school assignment - needless to say I failed all the quizzes and tests on that History unit. I was too embarrassed to tell my teacher my father was a racist and refused to let me watch it.
I was not supposed to sit with or speak to the migrant workers that rode our bus and my brothers told on me if I did. Sometimes I had to stand on the bus ride home.
I hated living that way and I got out as soon as I could - made friends with all types of people when I went away to college - regardless of race, sexual orientation or gender.
I've heard lots of stories like that (about kids growing up in racist homes). I guess I was lucky, my parents were not like that.
I think what bothers me the most is my brothers and my sister are still racists. My father died a racist and my mother remains a racist (as is my stepmom). At family functions I try my damnedest not to get into religion, politics or race because I know what they are.
That's awful. I hope you won't hate me for saying so. Racism is at the same time narrow-minded, oppressive, damaging, and sickening. I, too, know what it is to be on tedious surfaces skating around family (or friends) who can't accept or talk 'easily' about race or in my case, homosexuality. It is a constant threat to 'utter up' in their throats and spill out into the room. Television can trigger a negative response. I pick my moments to stand up for (positive) freedom of association or let it slide (this one time), nevertheless.
Being candid, there are racial overtones in some commenters comments on NT. I detect it. How? Because I am an avid reader who loves reading great and interesting writers (of the past and present) and unmistakably some of the old tropes, politics, and policies of the past creep boldly into comments: feigning as new ideas. (But, they are old ideas revisited.)
It could be true, these old, dangerous, murderous ideas are just new to a 'listener' or—maybe, maybe not, to some NT purveyors.
I try to ferret it out of the commenter, so as to get better clarity on what s/he means to convey to us all. Do they really understand why history is important to read about (or listen to an audio-book format), because racism stalks and haunts humanity, with its one foot in the grave and the other foot on topsoil.
I can see how difficult it would be to grow up in a family like that.
At this point it would be nice if at least some them changed-- but the fact that they are still the same must make it worse.
Unfortunately there are some rascists here.
Some try to hide it but after a while its becomes obvious.
Painfully obvious.
Not at all. It is the truth. I got into it once time when a "family" member was taking shots at me because my adult children still live with me. I said "They live their lives, work - why would I want them to live in a rat hole? And at least I didn't raise racists." BOOM - silence ensued.
It was very difficult, but it made me who I am & I know my children are not racist, homophobic, misogynistic assholes.
Its true-- even today-- in America-- there are many who praise "the virtues" of racism. And end even totalitarian rule.
I saw a documentary about King the other day where he told of a white woman coming up to him and spit on him. He told her that she was far to beautiful to behave that way. She later approached him again and apologized.
Well, of course that says a lot about Dr. King.
And of course he was a deeply religious man-- a Christian who actually followed the teaching of Christ rather than the perverted interpretation that some people have. (If Dr . King hadn't grown up in a religious family, he would've been in favor of equal rights for minorities, but probably wouldn't have done much about it. But his interpretation of scripture was that a good Christian should go behind mere thoughts and prayers and should actually take actions!
After all, (IMO) Jesus himself was a political activist for positive causes!
IMO it also says a lot about some rascists.
Some are incorrigible-- deep down inside their hatred is so great they will p[robably never change.
But one of the things I learned in the Civil Rights movement is that there are actually some people who act like rascists because that was so pervasive in the family (and the culture) they grew up in. In other words, they themselves were were actually not haters-- but they acted that way out of force of habit! That type of behaviour is so ingrained that act without thinking.....
Krishna, it is a great remembrance. I enjoy reading the comments too! (Thank you for the honorable mention 'up top.')
You're welcome