"I have a dream ... " We all know the words that start the famous speech.
But Martin Luther King Jr.'s crowning moment may never have happened without one of the largest protests ever — the March on Washington on August 28, 1963.
After growing backlash against blacks in the South, King and five others planned the event, a peaceful demonstration to end segregation and promote equal rights.
King crafted his famous speech specifically for the 250,000 people who would gather in the nation's capital that day.
In 1963, Birmingham, Alabama had become the epicenter of racist violence in America. A KKK member bombed a Baptist church, killing four young girls in September. Denise McNair, 11; Carole Robertson, 14; Addie Mae Collins, 14; and Cynthia Wesley, 14; from left, died in the fire.
Source: Associated Press
As a result, Martin Luther King, Jr. turned his focus to the area, organizing many anti-segregation demonstrations there. Police arrested King and his fellow civil rights proponent, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, on April 12, 1963 during a demonstration.
Source: Associated Press
The situation in the South continued to worsen. Below, firefighters in Birmingham turn a high-powered hose on peaceful demonstrators. Bayard Rustin, the march's head organizer, said that credit for mobilizing the march could go to "Bull Connor [Commissioner of Public Safety in Birmingham], his police dogs, and his fire hoses."
Source: Congress of Racial Equality
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