MLK's Final Message, 50 Years after His Death

WAMU On Point, April 4, 2018

Before he was assassinated in Memphis on April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered what was to be the last public address of his life to a crowd of sanitation workers, who were about to strike for a living wage. On Wednesday — the 50th anniversary of King’s death — we discussed his legacy and economic justice.

On Point guest host Jennifer Glasse spoke with Rev. Dr. William Barber II, leader of the Poor People’s Campaign; Charles McKinney, history professor and Chair of Africana Studies at Rhodes College in Memphis; and Michael Honey, professor of labor history and Martin Luther King studies at the University of Washington Tacoma. The highlights below have been lightly edited for clarity.