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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 12, 2000)
TldE ClACkAMAS P r ÍNT Martin Luther King Jr. __ MLK-. Holiday honors legacy Continued from page 1 Violenceerupts: Bloody Sunday In 1965 SCLC joined a voting rights protest march planned from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery, over 50 miles away. The goal of the march was to draw national attention to the struggle for black voting rights in the state. The March was stopped outside of Selma where protestors were beaten and tear-gassed by police. The vio lence was televised and came to be known as Bloody Sunday. SCLC petitioned for and received a federal court order barring police from interfering with a new march. Two weeks after Bloody Sunday, more than 3000 people, including a core of 300 who would make the entire trip, set out towards Mont gomery. They arrived five days later, when King ad dressed over 200,000 people in front of the capitol build ing. __ L WedNEsdAy, J anuary 12, 2000 Excerpts from Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech on March 28 in support of striking Reno reopened a limited investiga- sanitation workers. When the march tion into the assassination. In Dec. became violent, one black was killed and more than fifty people were injured. King left Memphis distressed over the violence. He returned April 3 in the hopes of leading a peaceful march. King told a crowd at the Memphis Ma sonic Temple, "1 may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the prom ised land." Ebenezer Baptist Church 1 ■■■ ■■ / Assassination: A Conspiracy? 1999, a Memphis jury awarded the King was assassinated the follow King family $ 100 in a wrongfill death ing day, April 4, on the balcony of suit. The jury decided that the mur the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis. He der was indeed a conspiracy. died at St. Joseph's Hospital of a gunshot wound in the neck. James The memory lives on Earl Ray, an es King’s historical importance was caped white con memorialized at the Martin Luther vict, was con King Jr. Center for Social Justice, a victed of the mur research institute in Atlanta. Also der and sentenced in Atlanta is the Martin Luther King to 99 years in Jr. National Historic Site, which in prison. News of cludes his birthplace, the Ebenezer the assassination Church, and the King Center, where resulted in shock his tomb is located. But perhaps the and anger most important memorial is the na Focus Shifted throughout the tional holiday in his honor which After the nation and the took over two decades to make a le Selma protests, world, prompting gal holiday. King had less riots in over a hun The first legislation to commemo dramatic suc Signing of the Civil Rights act dred U.S. cities. rate King’s birthday was submitted cesses in his July 1964. Although over four days after his assassination in struggle for the years many 1968. After 15 years of lobbying black ci,vil rights. Many white investigators have suspected that throughout the nation, President American’s who had supported his Ray did riot act alone, no accom Reagan signed the legislation in work believed that the job was done. plices have ever been identified. 1983. The holiday, which is the third He also lost support when he joined After King’s death, historians dis Monday of January, was first ob- the antiwar activists in 1965 and covered that the FBI often publicly criticized American foreign tapped King’s phone line and policy in Vietnam. reported on his private life to the president and other govern By the mid-1960’s, King’s role as the unchallenged leader of civil ment officials. The FBI’s rea rights was questioned. Many son for the invasion of privacy younger blacks were looking to was that King associated with wards the beliefs of the recently Communists and other “radi assassinated black Muslim leader, cals.” Malcolm X, whose insistence on Since his assassination over black self- three decades ago, reliance many conspiracy and the theories have emerged. These rights of theories gained re blacks to defend newed momentum King is shot on his hotel balcony; when King’s son them his entourage point to the source selves Dexter met with of the shot. April 4,1968. against James Earl Ray in violent at prison in 1997. Dexter served in 1986. It is the first new tacks cap shook his father’s alleged holiday since 1948, when Memorial tured the King and his wife Coretta. assassin's hand and said Day was created as a “prayer for youths' attention. the words “I believe you” after Ray peace” day. And it’s only the third King shifted his focus to the repeatedly denied any involvement of the 20th century (the other being North. He realized that the economic in King’s assassination. The King Veterans Day, started in 1926 to difficulties of blacks in northern cit family has supported Ray who sup honor those who gave their lives in ies had been ignored. Throughout posedly pled guilty to King’s mur World War I). the late 60’s, King turned his focus der in 1968 under “hostile circum On a day when you don't have to of civil rights activism to economic stances involving his legal counsel.” come to classes, maybe you will issues. His new emphasis on eco A second boost to one of the con have time to reflect and appreciate nomic rights took King to Memphis, spiracy theories came in August the impact that one single man has Tennessee to lead a demonstration 1998 when Attorney General Janet made on society and the world. ■' - vF.’ ' Ml ■ IM I I I I I i 1 [ • "I accept the Nobel Prize for Peace at a moment when twenty-two million Ne groes of the United States of America are engaged in a creative battle to end the long night of racial injus tice." • "I have the audacity to believe that peoples every where can have three meals a.day for their bod ies, education and culture fortheir minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits." • "Therefore, I must ask ' • "I accept this prize on be why this prize is awarded to half of all men who love a movement which is belea peace and brotherhood... I guered and committed to un am aware that this prize is relenting struggle; to a much more than an honor movement which has not to me personally." won the very peace and brotherhood which is the es • "Yet when years have sence of the Nobel Prize." rolled past and when the blazing light of truth is fo • "Sooner or later all the cused on this marvelous people of the world will have age in which we live -- men to discover a way to live to and women will know and gether in peace." children will be taught that we have a finer land, a bet • "I believe that unarmed ter people, a more noble truth and unconditional love civilization - because these will have the final word in humble children of God reality. This is Why right tem were willing to suffer for porarily defeated is stronger righteousness' sake." than evil triumphant." • "I believe that even amid today's motor bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomor row." King, below left, waves to a crowd with Coretta by his side. His grave, center, is located at the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic site. King, right, in his office, a picture of Gandhi in the background. King followed Gandhi's non violence ideals. REV MARTIN LUTHER KING. JB 1929 — 1968 'FREE at last , free at last . Dec. 10, 1964 ' THANK GOD ALMIGHTY I'M FREE AT LAST. I- I 1 I ■f g To find out more about MLK goto: www.mlk-online.net I
