Classical Music With Big Mike

Monday, Jan 15, 2024, marks the 95th heavenly birthday of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.; the whole nation celebrates and honors this great patriot with the official federal holiday of Martin Luther King Day.

From the Biography Martin Luther King Web site: “Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. King, both a Baptist minister and civil-rights activist, had a seismic impact on race relations in the United States, beginning in the mid-1950s. Among many efforts, King headed the SCLC.  Through his activism, he played a pivotal role in ending the legal segregation of African-American citizens in the South and other areas of the nation, as well as the creation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.  King received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, among several other honors.  King was assassinated in April 1968, and continues to be remembered as one of the most lauded African-American leaders in history, often referenced by his 1963 speech, ‘I Have a Dream’.”On August 28, 1963 there was a huge civil rights “March on Washington for jobs and freedom”, which culminated in Martin Luther King’s iconic “I have a dream speech” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, before hundreds of thousands [some estimate 250,000] of Americans.

“I’ve seen the Promised Land,” Martin Luther King Jr. said in a speech in Memphis on April 3, 1968. He was assassinated the following day: This video from the Smithsonian You Tube Site:

One of the great treatise’s on freedom was written on April 16, 1963 with Dr. King’s brilliant and iconic “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” addressed to “my fellow clergyman”. It is rather long but I will hope you take the time to read by clicking this link:  Letter From A Birmingham Jail

As this great man and great American patriot is now delivering his inspiring words to the angels in heaven, let all of America salute Martin Luther King Jr. and enjoy this Martin Luther King Day!

Happy King Day, America!