Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

January 17, 2003

by NOW Staff

In celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the National Organization for Women (NOW) remembers the great civil rights leader's fight for freedom, equality and dignity for everyone. Many of Dr. King's words—especially those during the Vietnam era—have particular resonance today.

Here are some excerpts from some of Dr. King's speeches and writings.

• "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
  —Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963
  

• "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death."
  —"Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?" 1967

• "Our nettlesome task is to discover how to organize our strength into compelling power."
  —"Where Do We Go From Here? Chaos or Community?" 1967
  

• "We must come to see that the roots of racism are very deep in our country, and there must be something positive and massive in order to get rid of all the effects of racism and the tragedies of racial injustice."
  —Sermon delivered at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., "Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution," March 31, 1968
  

• "I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. That is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant."
  —Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech, Oslo, Norway, Dec. 10, 1964
  

• "Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed."
  —Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963
  

For more information about the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., visit The King Center or the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project at Stanford University.