MLK

The daughters of two associates of Martin Luther King Jr. from his Boston years recently unveiled a plaque in Roxbury where he attained membership in the nation’s oldest Black collegiate fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha.

In April 1965, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led a march from Carter Playground on the edge of Roxbury to Boston Common. It was a rally that called for action on civil rights and segregation in schools.

As we enter this Black History Month, we find ourselves in a moment of sharp contrast. In the morning, we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his “I Have a Dream” speech — a call for racial equity and unity. By midafternoon, President Trump has already reversed as much racial progress as possible within his first hours back in office, making it clear where his priorities lie.

Monday, Jan. 20 is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a celebration and honoring of the work done by the famed civil rights leader. Organizations around Boston are offering free museum admission, family-friendly activities and live performances for the occasion.

On Martin Luther King Day, we celebrate his life and his message, but the true monument to King should not just be the outdoor memorial in D.C. … it must be the completion of the struggle he lived and died for.

In the two years since “The Embrace” was unveiled, Elizabeth Tiblanc has watched the sculpture come to mean so many different things to different people.

After Martin Luther King Jr. had settled in for his studies at Boston University in the fall of 1951, one of his priority non-academic tasks was to make three vital contacts in Roxbury.

Martin Luther King Jr. touched Boston, and Boston touched him. Being in Boston was an important part of his life, and his presence here during the 1950s and 60s is part of the city’s history.

Boston shares a distinction with Montgomery, Alabama; Chester, Pennsylvania; and Atlanta, Georgia. They are the only places the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King lived for any length of time during his 39 years on earth. Yet, unlike these other cities that King once called home — and many other major U.S. cities — Boston has until now had no major monument to the slain civil rights leader.

Rising 30 feet above the Tidal Basin in Washington D.C. is a granite statue of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. that memorializes the man and his role in the American civil rights movement

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s words continue to inspire more than 50 years after his death

On Monday, Jan. 17, the nation will pause to honor the life of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Many will recall the historic civil rights achievements of King, the only Black American to be honored with a national holiday.