On August 28, 1963, despite searing heat, over 250,000 people from all corners of the country marched on our nation’s capital. In the shadow of the Washington Monument, all the marchers shared the same dream: equality for the nearly 20 million African Americans living in the United States. This moment in time is recorded by Stanley Tretick’s never-before-published photos of that day, now released in a new book accompanied by author Kitty Kelley’s poignant text. Joining Kitty Kelley on stage will be journalist Soledad O’Brien and Marian Wright Edelman, President of the Children's Defense Fund and March on Washington participant. The program will include photos projected on screen and vocal performances by Garrick Jordan. A book signing will follow the program.
March on Washington 50th anniversary programming at the National Archives is made possible in partnership with the Foundation for the National Archives through the generous support of Texas Instruments.
Background:
Fifty years ago this month, on August 28, 1963, a high point in the long pursuit of African American civil rights took place in Washington, DC. Organized by a coalition of civil rights, religious, and labor organizations, the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom drew hundreds of thousands of participants in support of President John F. Kennedy’s proposed civil rights bill. Organizers included A. Philip Randolph of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, Roy Wilkins of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, John Lewis of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Recordings of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech that day have helped it become one of the best-remembered speeches in American history and a lasting symbol of the event.
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