March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom

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[/i][/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/March_on_Washington_for_Jobs_and_Freedom][i][u][size=25][color:3ad4=#0000ff]March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom[/i][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]
King, representing SCLC, was among the leaders of the so-called "Big Six" civil rights organizations who were instrumental in the organization of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963. The other leaders and organizations comprising the Big Six were: [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Roy_Wilkins][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Roy Wilkins[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] from the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/National_Association_for_the_Advancement_of_Colored_People][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]National Association for the Advancement of Colored People[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]; [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Whitney_Young][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Whitney Young[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21], [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/National_Urban_League][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]National Urban League[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]; [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/A._Philip_Randolph][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]A. Philip Randolph[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21], [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Brotherhood_of_Sleeping_Car_Porters][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]; [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/John_Lewis_(politician)][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]John Lewis[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21], [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Student_Nonviolent_Coordinating_Committee][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]SNCC[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]; and [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/James_L._Farmer,_Jr.][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]James L. Farmer, Jr.[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] of the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Congress_of_Racial_Equality][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Congress of Racial Equality[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21].[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-49][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][50][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] The primary logistical and strategic organizer was King's colleague [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Bayard_Rustin][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Bayard Rustin[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21].[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-50][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][51][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] For King, this role was another which courted controversy, since he was one of the key figures who acceded to the wishes of President [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/John_F._Kennedy][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]John F. Kennedy[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] in changing the focus of the march.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-51][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][52][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] Kennedy initially opposed the march outright, because he was concerned it would negatively impact the drive for passage of civil rights legislation, but the organizers were firm that the march would proceed.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-52][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][53][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]
The march originally was conceived as an event to dramatize the desperate condition of blacks in the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Southern_United_States][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]southern United States[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] and a very public opportunity to place organizers' concerns and grievances squarely before the seat of power in the nation's capital. Organizers intended to excoriate and then challenge the federal government for its failure to safeguard the civil rights and physical safety of civil rights workers and blacks, generally, in the South. However, the group acquiesced to presidential pressure and influence, and the event ultimately took on a far less strident tone.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-farce-53][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][54][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] As a result, some civil rights activists felt it presented an inaccurate, sanitized pageant of racial harmony; [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Malcolm_X][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Malcolm X[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] called it the "Farce on Washington," and members of the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Nation_of_Islam][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Nation of Islam[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] were not permitted to attend the march.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-farce-53][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][54][/u][/color][/size][size=21]HYPERLINK \l "cite_note-54"[/size][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][55][/u][/color][/size][/url]

[url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Image:Martin_Luther_King_-_March_on_Washington.jpg][/url][size=21]
King is perhaps most famous for his "[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/I_Have_a_Dream][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]I Have a Dream[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]" speech, given in front of the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Lincoln_Memorial][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Lincoln Memorial[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] during the 1963 [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/March_on_Washington_for_Jobs_and_Freedom][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21].
The march did, however, make specific demands: an end to racial segregation in public school; meaningful civil rights legislation, including a law prohibiting racial discrimination in employment; protection of civil rights workers from police brutality; a $2 [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Minimum_wage][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]minimum wage[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] for all workers; and self-government for [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Washington,_D.C.][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Washington, D.C.[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21], then governed by congressional committee.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-55][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][56][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] Despite tensions, the march was a resounding success. More than a quarter million people of diverse ethnicities attended the event, sprawling from the steps of the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Lincoln_Memorial][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Lincoln Memorial[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] onto the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/National_Mall][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]National Mall[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] and around the reflecting pool. At the time, it was the largest gathering of protesters in Washington's history.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-56][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][57][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] King's "[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/I_Have_a_Dream][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]I Have a Dream[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]" speech electrified the crowd. It is regarded, along with [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Abraham Lincoln[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]'s [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Gettysburg_Address][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Gettysburg Address[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] and [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Franklin D. Roosevelt[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]'s [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Infamy_Speech][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Infamy Speech[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21], as one of the finest speeches in the history of American oratory.[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-57][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][58][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]
Throughout his career of service, King wrote and spoke frequently, drawing on his experience as a preacher. His "[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Letter_from_Birmingham_Jail][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Letter from Birmingham Jail[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21]", written in 1963, is a "passionate" statement of his crusade for [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Justice][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]justice[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21].[/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/l%20cite_note-58][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff][59][/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21] On October 14, 1964, King became the youngest recipient of the [/size][url=https://algassania2.mam9.com/wiki/Nobel_Peace_Prize][u][size=21][color:3ad4=#0000ff]Nobel Peace Prize[/u][/color][/size][/url][size=21], which was awarded to him for leading no H.An-violent resistance to end racial prejudice in the United States.[/size]