Title: Martin's dream : my journey and the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. : a memoir /
Authors: Carson, Clayborne, 1944-
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan,
Year: 2013
Subjects: Carson, Clayborne,; Carson, Clayborne, Friends and associates.; King, Martin Luther, Influence.; King, Martin Luther, Political and social views.; King, Coretta Scott,; Stanford University Faculty Biography.; African American civil rights workers Biography; African American political activists Biography.; African American historians Biography.
Abstract: On August 28, 1963 hundreds of thousands of demonstrators flocked to the nation's capital for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. It was Clayborne Carson's first demonstration. A nineteen-year-old black student from a working-class family in New Mexico, Carson hitched a ride to Washington. Unsure how he would return home, he was nonetheless certain that he wanted to connect with the youthful protesters and community organizers who spearheaded the freedom struggle. Decades later, Coretta Scott King selected Dr. Carson -- then a history professor at Stanford University -- to edit the papers of her late husband. In this candid and engrossing memoir, he traces his evolution from political activist to activist scholar. He vividly recalls his involvement in the movement's heyday and in the subsequent turbulent period when King's visionary dream became real for some and remained unfulfilled for others. He recounts his conversations with key African Americans of the past half century, including Black Power firebrand Stokely Carmichael and dedicated organizers such as Ella Baker and Bob Moses. His description of his long-term relationship with Coretta Scott King sheds new light on her crucial role in preserving and protecting her late husband's legacy. Written from the unique perspective of a renowned scholar, this highly readable account gives readers valuable new insights about the global significance of King's inspiring ideas and his still unfolding legacy.
Contents: Part one: the movement. Alone at the march ; Leaving home ; Finding the movement in Los Angeles ; Bridging racial boundaries ; Voluntary exile ; A not so ivory tower ; SNCC's legacy ; In struggle -- Part two: The King Papers Project. Keeper of the papers ; Editing King ; Unwanted discovery ; Atlanta roots ; Passages ; Dexter's vision ; In Coretta's basement ; Autobiographer ; A dream deferred ; Transitions -- Part three: King's legacy. Memorial on the mall ; Bringing King to China ; A Palestinian King drama ; Obama's conscience ; An enduring dream.