After leaving boxing, Robinson became a civil rights activist and follower of Martin Luther King, Jr. He participated in the 1963 March on Washington and heard King's noted "I Have a Dream" speech. He also attended the funerals held for James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner, and participated in organizing Resurrection City, a camp set up in 1968 at the Washington Mall to draw attention to the plight of poor people of color in the United States.