Politics
Politics

Remember the real MLK, the left says

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. stands with other civil rights leaders on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis

Credit: HANDOUT

Credit: HANDOUT

In this April 3, 1968 file photo, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. stands with other civil rights leaders on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tenn., a day before he was assassinated at approximately the same place. AP/Charles Kelly
By Bria Felicien
April 4, 2018

1. Jesse Jackson: How Dr. King lived is why he died

In The New York Times: "We owe it to Dr. King to commemorate the man in full: a radical, ecumenical, antiwar, pro-immigrant and scholarly champion of the poor."

2. MLK was complicated. We should remember him that way.

From The Washington Post: "I learned of MLK's death as a teen in the segregated South. The activist was more complicated than history remembers him."

3. When Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed, he was less popular than Donald Trump is today

From USA TODAY: "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a revolution in values with an expansive political agenda despite backlash to his controversial views."

About the Author

Bria Felicien is a published author and staff writer at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. She produces podcasts for the AJC.

Follow Bria Felicien on twitter
More Stories

Keep Reading

Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announces her bid for governor while meeting with journalists in Atlanta Monday, May 19, 2025. Bottoms describes herself as a moderate, but many of her critics disagree. (Ben Gray for the AJC)

Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC

Bottoms reframes her record as 2026 races takes shape

Can the former Atlanta mayor pitch herself as a centrist for governor of Georgia?

Raffensperger launches 1st major policy plan with property tax-relief package

The secretary of state and GOP hopeful for Georgia governor wants ‘one predictable system’ for local taxes.

Esteves unveils universal child-care plan in bid for Georgia governor

Democrat proposes using lottery reserves to expand pre-K to 3- and 4-year-olds and create statewide child-care access by 2035.

2h ago

The Latest

Jason Esteves is in a six-way battle for the Democratic nomination for Georgia governor. (Natrice Miller/AJC)

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Esteves unveils universal child-care plan in bid for Georgia governor

2h ago

Raffensperger launches 1st major policy plan with property tax-relief package

LISTEN

Monday Mailbag: Marjorie Taylor Greene, FAA and Atlanta City Council

Featured

FILE - President Donald Trump arrives and walks by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., to address a joint session of Congress at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 4, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Credit: AP

Greene says she regrets ‘toxic politics’ as split with Trump widens

Amid an ongoing political makeover, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene urges a kinder tone and says the president’s attacks put her at risk.

Long-range plan could significantly change Atlanta’s schools

Declining enrollment and rising costs led APS officials to develop a plan that would “repurpose” 16 school buildings. A public hearing is scheduled for Dec. 3.

‘Digital is real time, print is lifetime’: Farewells to the paper AJC

From the sound of the presses to framing special front pages, those who helped build the AJC share their memories.