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Right to Peaceably Assemble
Opponents of the pending Civil Rights Act predicted violence at the 1963 March on Washington and attempted to block the demonstration. Their fears were unfounded, and the march proceeded calmly. Many of the addresses were memorable -- especially Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech -- but the most emotionally powerful aspect of the march was the demonstrators' peaceful assembly.
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Lincoln Memorial Program, August 28, 1963, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library |