Latest news with #Dr.King
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Clayborn Temple wall collapses due to strong winds: MFD
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Part of the fire-damaged remains of Clayborn Temple collapsed due to strong winds and severe storm conditions, the Memphis Fire Department says. At 9:30 Wednesday night, the Memphis Fire Department Incident Commander advised dispatch that the east wall of Clayborn Temple had collapsed due to strong winds and severe storm conditions. ORIGINAL Fire destroys Clayborn Temple, historic Memphis church with ties to Civil Rights movement The historic church at the intersection of Hernando Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue went up in flames around 1:30 a.m. Monday. Clayborn Temple was the launching point for a march for sanitation workers' rights that brought Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to Memphis in 1968. The iconic 'I Am A Man' signs used in the march were printed there. Dr. King planned to march with sanitation workers from Clayborn Temple on April 8, before he was assassinated on April 4 on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. His wife, Coretta Scott King, led strikers and thousands of supporters in his place. ATF, MFD search for clues after Clayborn Temple lost to fire The building dates to 1892, when it was originally Second Presbyterian Church. In 1949, the building was sold to the African Methodist Episcopal church and was renamed Clayborn Temple. In 2018, the National Trust for Historic Preservation officially named the church a national treasure. In 2023, a $6 million restoration of the temple was completed and is the site of the I Am A Man Plaza. Mayor Paul Young visited the site Monday morning, saying that the work that went on in Clayborn Temple, one of Memphis's greatest treasures, will continue. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
USA Today
05-04-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered 57 years ago. America still needs his wisdom.
Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered 57 years ago. America still needs his wisdom. | Opinion American people of goodwill have come a long way since Dr. King's death. But we're still a work in progress. Show Caption Hide Caption This day in history: Selma to Montgomery march begins Led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., between 3,000 and 8,000 marchers crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge out of Selma on their way to Montgomery. Cover Media - Shareable The American project is never finished. And if our history proves anything, it's that progress comes from unlikely places and the acts of everyday people. Places like the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama − and people like those who risked their lives to walk across it 60 years ago. The three of us will cross that same bridge this weekend, as we commemorate the anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4 in Memphis, Tennessee. With the hindsight of history, Americans think of Dr. King and the civil rights activists in Selma as heroes. They were. It took heroic courage to stand for the American principles of equal rights and the dignity of all people at a time when our country so tragically failed to live up to them. Those marchers were met with brutal violence, which our country remembers as 'Bloody Sunday.' But even the most horrific violations of our country's founding principles didn't stop them from trying to more fully realize their promise. In that moment when the country risked being torn apart by hate, Dr. King told Americans to love. He called it 'agape love' that 'begins by loving others for their sakes' and 'discovers the neighbor' in every person we meet. A love that 'makes no distinction between a friend and enemy.' A 'love seeking to preserve and create community.' Americans urgently need Dr. King's wisdom today American people of goodwill have come a long way since Dr. King's death. But we're still a work in progress. And the insights that guided his actions are urgently needed today to address our own challenges. Sixty years after Selma, Americans still feel what Dr. King called a 'slow fire of discontent.' Resentment is soaring, with just 7% of Americans saying society is 'mostly fair.' And nearly half of Americans say those who hold different political views aren't just wrong − they're evil. If we can't see the humanity in our fellow Americans, even and especially those with whom we disagree, our country's future is grim indeed. Opinion: In Martin Luther King's last speech, people remember the mountaintop but ignore the poor Separated by such widening chasms of division, Americans need to reject the hate and unite around the love that Dr. King preached. But a call to love without a path to action has little chance of succeeding. The heroes of the Civil Rights Movement knew this. They were ordinary Americans whose extraordinary actions changed a nation. They sat at lunch counters, they walked to work rather than ride the bus and they marched across the bridge in Selma. The everyday nature of these acts does not diminish their importance. But it does prove that it's within the power of every person to contribute to profound change. They show that we cannot wait for someone else to solve our problems. We must be the solutions our communities and country need. We're calling Americans to acts of service The three of us are working to spark that action. As we approach the 250th anniversary of our country's founding in 2026 and Dr. King's 100th birthday in 2029, our organizations are launching a partnership alongside dozens of others to inspire people to contribute 100 million hours of service. We aim to show that everyone can help move America forward. This isn't merely performative volunteerism. This is about solving problems in the most proven way − by empowering every person to contribute to change from the bottom up. Opinion: Respect, reason work better than political insults This service, grounded in the love that Dr. King described, is how people discover that they matter and that we need each other. It's hard to hate the person you're working with to solve a problem in your community, no matter how different you are. It's hard to be disconnected, divided and resentful when you're contributing to help others succeed. And when people see that good things happen as a result, they want to do more of it. Americans already want to contribute in this way. But too often, they just don't know how. A recent study found that a clear majority of Americans across all demographics, age and geographies say they aspire to make a difference in their communities. But only a third feel they're making a difference. They're looking for the chance to find a life of meaning by contributing in the lives of others. And they give us hope for a new movement to more fully apply America's principles and realize America's promise. In his lifetime, Dr. King asked if Americans would choose 'chaos or community?' We must answer in the affirmative today − building the community that fosters true unity. Dr. King called this vision the 'Beloved Community' − a society where people could realize their potential by helping others do the same. The more people who engage in this deeply American process, the more progress we can achieve. That was Dr. King's dream. It also happens to be the American dream. And all of us must do our part to realize that dream today. Martin Luther King III is chairman and Arndrea Waters King is president of the Martin Luther King III Foundation. Brian Hooks is chairman and CEO of Stand Together.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Historic home where Selma march was planned now resides in Henry Ford's Greenfield Village
The grounds of the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation are now home to one of the country's most pivotal residences in civil rights history. The historic Selma to Montgomery, Alabama marches for voting rights in 1965 trace to a critical but often overlooked piece of history: The Jackson Home. The modest Selma residence, once the home of Dr. Sullivan Jackson and Mrs. Richie Jean Sherrod Jackson, played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement, serving as a sanctuary and strategic hub for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and other civil rights leaders as they planned the marches that ultimately changed America. From the Jacksons' living room, Dr. King and others watched President Lyndon Baines Johnson's 'We Shall Overcome' speech as the nation's highest office publicly backed voting rights. A now-iconic photo of Dr. King inside the Jackson Home, published in LIFE magazine, captures this rare and powerful moment – one that underscores the significance of this space in shaping the movement. It was in this very home where leaders planned the final, successful Selma to Montgomery march, which began on March 21 and concluded on March 25 with thousands of courageous marchers. By August, the movement's sacrifices led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Detroit, home to many who marched in 1965, is now the new resting place of the Jackson Home, It will be permanently housed in Greenfield Village at The Henry Ford, ensuring its legacy is preserved for generations to come. More: Detroit man was on phone with Martin Luther King Jr.'s wife during assassination 'All of this work is basically standing on the shoulders of decades of activism by the local community there in Selma, as well as other activists who had come into Selma in the last few years,' said Amber Mitchell, curator of Black history at The Henry Ford. 'For most people, what they will remember about the voting rights movement, in particular, are the events of Bloody Sunday. The very first attempt at the Selma to Montgomery march was on March 7, 1965, and there were three attempts, with this anniversary, March 21 through the 25th being the successful march that ended up opening the door for the Voting Rights Act of 1965. We're celebrating the 60th anniversary this year. 'And so, here at The Henry Ford, we are in the process of preserving our first major home acquisition in the last 40 years, the Dr. Sullivan and Richie Jackson home, the Selma home that Dr. King and his lieutenants from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference stayed in during this period of time.' The Jacksons' only daughter, Jawana Jackson, had been operating the family home as a museum in Selma since her mother's passing in 2014 and approached The Henry Ford. 'She was looking for a place to steward her family story,' said Mitchell, 'mainly to be able to keep all these items and artifacts that were in the home, as well as a place that would make sure the home would be able to be seen by large amounts of people, but also be protected and maintained in perpetuity. So, after much deliberation, research, engagement, The Henry Ford decided to go ahead and acquire this home. 'Like I mentioned, it's been 40 years since the last time we moved a house into Greenfield Village, and so we didn't want to take this lightly. We've been engaging experts across the country to assist us in this process. The home was moved in late 2023 and is currently on its brand-new foundation out in the village. Over the course of this next year, we are continuing to restore the home to its 1965 façade and prepare it for opening in the summer of 2026.' Mitchell said moving the house was an arduous task, to put it mildly. 'It's a long way – actually, it's between 900 and 1,000 miles, depending on which way you drive it,' she said. 'With very purposeful care, working with all kinds of historic preservation experts, we essentially removed all the artifacts and items from the home, brought those things up, essentially shored (the house) up on the inside to make sure that the home would not move. Removed the roof, removed the porch, and then, lastly, we cut it in half. So the house was moved up in two separate halves – about a 2,000 sq. ft. home – and both halves were then basically enveloped with waterproof casing and driven up. 'It was a really cool process, but most importantly, they kept the house's integrity.' The home's exterior can currently be viewed while touring Greenfield Village as its work process continues, and photos can be viewed at For the remainder of the year, the museum itself will display 'We Shall Overcome: 60 Years of the Voting Rights Act,' an exhibition featuring the Jackson home project and a number of its artifacts. 'If you are a voter,' said Mitchell, 'the Voting Rights Act and the story of voting in the United States – especially as African Americans – is extremely important, extremely relevant. At the same time, Selma and this area of Alabama have a new connection to Detroit in that many people who made that Great Migration trek to come work in the factories and other facilities here in the Detroit area were coming from Selma, Dallas County, Lowndes County, Alabama. So these are folks who have not only a direct connection back to the area, they also are often related to people who were engaged with the movement. 'Then, just beyond that, this is a story that couldn't be more relevant today, couldn't be more relevant to our collective understanding of American citizenship. I really hope that our visitors and folks across the metro Detroit area and beyond get really excited about this. Think about a community member who opened up their doors to the world and helped transform the way you and I live here today and so many of these images that continue to live in the American mind. We're excited to be able to bring some of those things to life in this exhibit.' For information, visit Contact Free Press arts and culture reporter Duante Beddingfield at dbeddingfield@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Historic home where Selma march was planned resides in metro Detroit
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
COFO Civil Rights Education Center
JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – It was the epicenter of the modern Civil Rights Movement. Today, it sits as a museum and education center on the Jackson State University (JSU) campus. The Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) was founded in 1961. It was the brainchild of Civil Rights activist Bob Moses to allow Civil Rights organizations to operate under one umbrella in Mississippi. 'Fast Black History': TikTok creator educates viewers on culture, music 'He was here with SNICK, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. There were dozens of organizations that would make up for the other big. Three of those organizations included Dr. King's organization, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, called the Congress of Racial Equality, which had organized the freedom Rides and the NAACP Medgar Evers organization in Mississippi. It was unique to this state and to this place,' explained Dr. Robert Luckett, Jr., director of the JSU Margaret Walker Center. It wasn't until 1963 that the building on J.R. Lynch Street would become the home and serve as the state headquarters for the organization. 'And so 1963, 1964, during Freedom Summer, which would be organized out of this space in 1965, would really be the height of the activism that would take place in this room,' said Luckett. The COFO Civil Rights Education Center sits at the heart of the J.R. Lynch Street corridor and is open Monday through Friday for visitors. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
