Tagged: Martin Luther King Jr.

Fifty years ago, the White House was the site of an unusual party.

It was a celebration of the Emancipation Proclamation's centennial, held on Abraham Lincoln's birthday, and many of the guests were descendants of the people Lincoln's historic document freed.

But noticeably absent was the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. The civil rights leader had declined the invitation after earlier conversations with President Kennedy about segregation had yielded few results.

Born Of Frustration

Transcript

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. Good morning, I'm David Greene.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And I'm Steve Inskeep.

Many inaugural addresses play on themes that President Obama touched on yesterday.

GREENE: He cited the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, our tradition of self-government and earlier inaugural addresses.

INSKEEP: That's all pretty normal. What is different about each inauguration address is how the president molds those themes into the moment.

The Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. will be remembered in several events across the Front Range. Here are the scheduled celebrations.