March On Washington For Jobs & Freedom 50th Anniversary Commemorative Poster!

On August 28, 1963 this was the largest demonstration in US history up to that time. Inspired by labor leader A. Philip Randolph; organized by longtime activist Bayard Rustin (book available); site of Martin Luther King’ s “I Have A Dream” speech.

Text On Poster: The March on Washington, one of the most important days in the Civil Rights Movement, brought together a quarter of a million people, in what was the largest US demonstration at the time, to pressure the US Congress to act in support of racial and economic justice. The march was inspired by labor leader A. Philip Randolph and organized by Bayard Rustin who was the behind-the-scenes master theorist and strategist for many civil rights campaigns. Bayard's invisibility resulted from him being gay and having the courage to be out when such honesty was unacceptable. Bayard acquainted Martin Luther King with nonviolence and was himself a life-long practitioner. There were six chairmen for the march. The "Big Six" were: James Farmer (CORE), Martin Luther King (SCLC), John Lewis (SNCC), A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins (NAACP) and Whitney Young (National Urban League). A signature event at the march was Martin Luther King's powerful "I Have a Dream"_x009d_ speech. The march was held on a Wednesday so many people risked losing their jobs by attending. Nevertheless, they came from all parts of America, determined to have their say in the re-shaping of a more just and free nation. Less than three weeks after the march four African American girls were killed in the infamous bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama. Then, on January 23, 1964, the 24th Amendment abolished the poll tax in 11 southern states and on July 2 the Civil Rights Act of 1964 became law, sweeping away, legally, most forms of discrimination in the US.

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