MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY in the USA

(info Robyn, interviews Tyler)

What is Martin Luther King Day?

- Martin Luther King Jr. Day, otherwise known as MLK Day, is a day celebrating the end of segregation.

- We celebrate MLK Day the third Monday in January. Often, MLK Day occurs throughout January 15 to January 21.

What is segregation?

- Segregation is a process where people are treated differently according to what they look like or their religion.

Why do we celebrate MLK Day?

- We celebrate MLK Day because Martin Luther King Jr. was a well-respected man who spoke about equal rights and how people disrespected colored people. He spoke about how just by the color of your skin, you should not be judged or treated worse than others.

- Martin Luther King recited a speech he wrote in front of many people. His speech was called I Have a Dream.

- Martin Luther King changed the lives of many colored people by speaking up and from then on, colored people's rights were better and more equal.

Who was Martin Luther King Jr.?

- Martin Luther King Jr. was a colored man who wanted everyone to be equal because he believed that is what everyone deserved.

- Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15 th , 1929 in Atlanta , Georgia in the U.S.

- Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated (killed) on April 4 th , 1968 in Memphis , Tennessee in the U.S.

What was I Have a Dream about?

- I Have a Dream was about how when Abraham Lincoln wrote the Emancipation Proclamation, he wanted all Negro (colored) slaves to be free and treated equally. Martin Luther King was disappointed that around one hundred years later, barely anything had changed and colored people were still treated unfairly.

Who assassinated Martin Luther King Jr. and why?

- James Earl Ray, a fugitive, assassinated Martin Luther King Jr. because he didn't believe in giving Negro people the equal rights that white people have.

TYLER'S INTERVIEWS WITH POP AND HAPPY

Pop
MLK Day
There were not many African Americans. Felt shame that people treated that way.
If it happened when he was 25, he would have wanted and insisted on justice. He was not saddened that john booth was killed. He believes he should have been in prison whole life. He should have had a trial.

Happy
Martin Luther King Jr.

Growing up we really didn't have segregation. There was only one African American family and there was no problem where she lived. She felt segregation was wrong. She had a couple of African American kids in her school and they were like everyone else. She remembers that after King was killed they had race riots. She can remember it being very scary. There were no race riots where she lived. She saw them on TV. They were around Washington D.C. They did not practice segregation in any schools in her area. She remembers when King was assassinated it was a scary time. It is good we have a holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. because he was fathering the civil rights movement, trying to improve what Lincoln did.