Rare Photos of Martin Luther King at Home~Time Magazine

[Cha]

The Kings at Home
Born in Atlanta, Martin Luther King Jr. moved to Montgomery, Ala., with his new wife Coretta in 1955 after King accepted a position as pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. King met Coretta while he was studying for his Ph.D. at Boston University and they were married in June 1953. Yolanda, their first child, above, was born in November 1955.


Man of Letters
During the years King and his family lived in Montgomery, they occupied the parsonage affiliated with the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. Many of the sermons that King delivered from the pulpit of the church — inspiring those participating in the Montgomery bus boycott — were composed there.


Conversation
King said in an interview that this photograph was taken as he tried to explain to his daughter Yolanda why she could not go to Funtown, a whites-only amusement park in Atlanta. King claims to have been tongue-tied when speaking to her. "One of the most painful experiences I have ever faced was to see her tears when I told her Funtown was closed to colored children, for I realized the first dark cloud of inferiority had floated into her little mental sky."


In Song
Coretta, a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, reluctantly gave up a career in music when she married King.


The Horror
On April 25, 1960, Atlanta Ku Klux Klansmen burned crosses in front of several black homes in the city. The King residence was one of the houses that were targeted.


Tense Moment
In this photograph, Coretta is upset with her husband, who had been attacked the night before by a disturbed white racist but had not defended himself. Though the police urged King to press charges, he refused. "The system we live under creates people such as this youth," he said. "I'm not interested in pressing charges. I'm interested in changing the kind of system that produces such men."

More photos from Time..
http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1952031_2021391,00.html

[Cha]

1. Thanks for the Recs..no

comments?

[MADem]

13. These are wonderful. nt

[Cha]

14. Thanks MADem.. what a brilliant person.. as Behind the Aegis says..

"I wish it was THIS picture though...."



http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4360682

[MADem]

16. +++++++1! nt

[Cha]

2. ..

[Behind the Aegis]

3. They are beautiful. I wish it was THIS picture though....

[Cha]

5. What a beautiful wish, Behind the Aegis.. It

would be so wonderful to still have him in our World with his wisdom and support!

Thank you~

[Behind the Aegis]

6. Yes, it would!

She thought so too...

[Cha]

9. Didn't you love the things that they stood for? Didn't they try to find some good for you and me?

I loved Moms Mabley's sweet version of Abraham Martin and John.. thank you Behind the Aegis~ brought a little tear or two to my eye.

So long ago.. she was smokin' on tv!

[freshwest]

58. And he'd be speaking up for ALL people, BTA. Great pic. n/t

[Behind the Aegis]

82. I believe he would as well!

I know his wife did.

[ailsagirl]

85. kick

[In_The_Wind]

4. The world is a better place because Martin Luther King was here.

[Cha]

7. Yes, In The Wind.. he was a brilliant, compassionate,

wise wise man. Under the last photo in the OP..

"In this photograph, Coretta is upset with her husband, who had been attacked the night before by a disturbed white racist but had not defended himself. Though the police urged King to press charges, he refused. "The system we live under creates people such as this youth," he said. "I'm not interested in pressing charges. I'm interested in changing the kind of system that produces such men."

Thank you~

[Dustlawyer]

31. Like Mandela, King knew that the quickest and best way to equality was non-violence.

It leaves only one side's actions to examine so that everyone can see the wrongness, ugliness of racism. I cannot imagine how hard it must have been to hold back and instruct others to hold back as well, knowing people were going to get hurt! The worst for me would have been at the funeral of those 4 little girls blown up at church. On the one hand, they were a most powerful message that continued non-violence could change the hearts and minds of many millions of white Americans, on the other hand, the heinous crime calls out for revenge in a way that even fire hoses, beatings and burning crosses could not. Knowing that these innocent little girls were victims of what he had set in motion had to weigh heavily on a good man like doctor King. At the same time though, he had to know that there would have been many more deaths and rapes etc., had he not fought for equality.

[Cha]

32. It was unfathomably ugly, Dustlawyer. America and we all are

so fortunate to have had Martin Luther King even for a short time to be such a force of change for Equality.


The Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. on August 28, 1963

link

I Have a Dream~

[Dustlawyer]

33. True Dat!

[DianaForRussFeingold]

8. Very nice, Thank you!

Going to share these...
Abraham, Martin, John (and speech MLK): http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024360627

[Cha]

11. I bookmarked In The Wind's thread, Diana..

thank you!

I first saw them on FB tonight and decided to share too.

[DianaForRussFeingold]

25. "MLK Discusses Kennedy in Rediscovered Audiotape"

I appreciate all your posts Cha.. I don't know if this one was posted yet.
"As the nation reflects on the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., an audiotape of an interview with the civil rights leader sheds new light on a famous phone call John F. Kennedy made to King's wife more than 50 years ago. (Jan. 19)"

[Cha]

26. Wow, that was interesting, Diana..thank you!

I had no idea about that part of history.. all the challenges they had back then, just to be recognized equally!

[DianaForRussFeingold]

38. :) Cha, I learned so much about MLK, today

This is so cool!

Here's another;
"A 1962 Speech by MLK Jr. was released for the first time today"
"Audio Recording: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
ADDRESS TO THE NEW YORK STATE CIVIL WAR CENTENNIAL COMMISSION
September 12, 1962"
With text .: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024360993

[Cha]

39. Thanks for the link, Diana.. I

marked it for later.. I'm drifting off now.. Hawai'i time.

[dipsydoodle]

10. A truly great man.

[Cha]

12. Yes he is, dipsydoodle.. thank you!

[shenmue]

15. :)

Thanks for posting.

[Cha]

17. Thank you for

rec and , shenmue

[Cha]

18. ..

[Cha]

19. ..

[Cha]

20. ..

[brer cat]

21. Wonderful pix, Cha.

Thank you for this thread.

K&R

[Cha]

23. You're welcome brer cat.. and

thank you!

[TBF]

22. Love this quote --

"The system we live under creates people such as this youth," he said. "I'm not interested in pressing charges. I'm interested in changing the kind of system that produces such men."

[Cha]

24. I know, TBF, that is an excellent example

of what made MLK such an exceptional force for change. There's been progress but we wish he were still around to help us out. We need all the help we can get to combat the system that lingers.

[TBF]

27. Yes, he was way ahead of his time -

on issues of race, economics ... he saw it all and rallied against it. When my six year old asked "who is he?" I realized this was going to be more than a 2 minute conversation. I told him he is a very important hero and that I would find us a book to read together about him. So now I need to look for a good one that explains this to a white child who really has been quite sheltered and has no clue.

[Cha]

28. Oh, that is so sweet. Your son

is lucky to have such a caring MOM who wants him to know things like that!

[MerryBlooms]

29. Brilliant, intense, brave, compassionate, loving, wise...

such an amazing man.

Wonderful thread, Cha, thank you.

[Cha]

30. Thank you for those adjectives that describe

Martin Luther King so Well, MerryBlooms~ You're Welcome~

[Cha]

34. ..

[Cha]

35. ...

[Sunlei]

36. great rare photos!

[Cha]

37. thanks Sunlei!

[Cha]

40. ..

MLK DAY~

[Jesus Malverde]

41. One for the racists, the g-men, J Edgar and all the haters....

[Jesus Malverde]

42. Brave beyond words...

[Cha]

43. Oh dear.. that looks like quite the rare photo..

thanks Jesus.

[avaistheone1]

44. Incredible pics.

k&r

[sheshe2]

45. A beautiful tribute to a great man~

[url=http://postimage.org/][img][/img][/url]





[url=http://postimage.org/][img][/img][/url]

"I have a dream"~

Thank you so much Cha, I enjoyed this entire thread.

[Cha]

47. Mahalo to you, she, for those beautiful photos of MLK~and PBO

On 1StrongBlackMan's thread yesterday asking what we do for MLK Day.. this is what I said.. being on DU and learning so much about him that I never knew before ...

This was in the BOG from babylonsistah last year..



link

I just found this on ILIWIWUITMABOIP

[sheshe2]

48. A truly great man, Cha.

He touched our lives and we are so much better for having him there.

We lost him far too soon~

Great picture from bsister and FB

~

[AnneD]

86. People are always quick to

quote the I had a dream speech, but the pictures of his arrest remind me of his powerful letters from the Birmingham Jail. If you have never read them, please do.

[MrMickeysMom]

46. Thank you, Cha...

[Cha]

52. MrMickeysMom~

Thank you

[freshwest]

49. Wonderful look at the life of a man taken from us too soon. n/t

[Cha]

54. Way too soon, fresh.. this was posted

by Behind the Aegis last night..



http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4360682

[freshwest]

57. Great! will got there...

[frwrfpos]

50. awesome pics

thanks for the thread...really enjoyed it.

[Cha]

55. Thank you, frwrfpos!

[Tarheel_Dem]

51. Oh Cha, how appropriate today. Thank you so much. History has been much kinder to MLK than....

his detractors were while he was alive. I suspect that's the case, more often than not.

[Cha]

59. The times were so volatile back then with

Dr King right in the center of it. It took time for more of America to realize how absolutely brilliant he was and how right he was about well, everything. We all wish he were still here.

Tarheel

[Tarheel_Dem]

62. "We all wish he were still here". Indeed, we do.

[Jefferson23]

53. The photo titled, the conversation. I can only imagine how painful. The photos are all touching.

[Cha]

60. thanks Jefferson, I agree.. I was hoping to

have dialogue about the description of the photos and what was going on. That one was particularly heartbreaking.


Conversation
King said in an interview that this photograph was taken as he tried to explain to his daughter Yolanda why she could not go to Funtown, a whites-only amusement park in Atlanta. King claims to have been tongue-tied when speaking to her. "One of the most painful experiences I have ever faced was to see her tears when I told her Funtown was closed to colored children, for I realized the first dark cloud of inferiority had floated into her little mental sky."

[Jefferson23]

61. Here you go: snip* Martin Luther King III, the famous man was just "Daddy."

And like millions of other daddies across the country, he got pestered by his kids when they wanted something.

Martin Luther King III chuckles, remembering how he and his older sister Yolanda used to clamor to go to Funtown. They frequently drove by the segregated amusement park with their mother, Coretta Scott King, as they dropped off their father at the airport for one of his many out-of-town speaking engagements or rallies.

Martin Luther King III recalls, "Many of those times, we were told, 'You're not able to go now, but Daddy's working on it, and one day we will be able to go.' "

Like a lot of black parents in the segregated South, Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King tried to protect their children from the myriad indignities of Jim Crow. When the family did eventually get to visit the amusement parks that Martin Luther King Jr. and his associates worked to desegregate, Martin Luther King III remembers that his father went with them.

He "rode on all the rides, and just enjoyed himself thoroughly," Martin Luther King III says. And they dressed, of course, in the accepted armor of respectability worn by protesters and integrators alike: their Sunday best.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/08/14/209877767/what-happened-to-the-children-of-civil-rights-martyrs

[Cha]

64. Oh..

thanks Jefferson..

I absolutely love this photo..


Martin Luther King Jr sits on a swing with his eldest daughter, Yolanda, and eldest son, Martin, at an amusement park he helped desegregate.

they took him.. they couldn't stand how he was changing Equality..


The family of slain civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., walk in the funeral procession in Atlanta, April 9, 1968. From left: daughter Yolanda, 12; King's brother A.D. King; daughter Bernice, 5; widow Coretta Scott King; Rev. Ralph Abernathy; sons Dexter, 7, and Martin Luther King III, 10.

It seems they named "Dexter" after the Church where MLK..

"In 1954, Martin Luther King began his first full-time pastorship at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. While at Dexter, King became president of the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) and led his congregation and the black community during the Montgomery bus boycott."

Dexter Avenue Baptist Church

Thank you so much for the link, Jefferson!

[Jefferson23]

66. They could not stand the success, the minds changing in Americans, no way could the racists

tolerate it. The photos of him being a Dad, and having won the recognition of equality that his
children, the next generation, would have it much better....just huge. I am sorry he is not here
for his children and for us as we battle against poverty....strangling minorities today.

It is difficult to measure the loss, isn't it.

You are most welcome..I was happy to post it.

[onpatrol98]

77. Dialogue about the pictures...

Heck...I'm explaining that now to my eight year old.

Son: Can we go to [insert child's name here] birthday party?
Mom: Ah...well, no! We're not going to [insert country club of choice here] for a birthday party.

Son: Why not?
Mom: They're not expecting us, sweetheart. One way to guarantee it...is to have it at the local country club.

Son: But, I got an invitation.
Mom: Sweetheart, everybody in the class got an invitation. (school policy...no additional details provided by me)

In most ways... a sign on the door is worse. But, in another way, it's easier. Just because the signs aren't there any more, doesn't mean you're supposed to enter. Churches are often no better. Diversity is not expected or encouraged, and sometimes actively discouraged. There are still too many old racists around. Apparently, waiting to get to the Whites ONLY side of heaven...I'm not sure.

[mountain grammy]

56. Bookmarking thread for later. Can never get enough.

I feel fortunate to have lived while he was alive and was able to appreciate what he was and what he did for America. I keep waiting for another, but there can't be another.

[Cha]

65. I was oblivious to all these

amazing events happening in history except for the awful reports of their assassinations, mountain grammy. It wasn't until much later that I was at a place where I learned what Martin Luther King and all of our brilliant pioneers of change had done for us.

And, there's always more to learn.

[etherealtruth]

63. Wonderful photos of a wonderful man

... hard to believe it has been so long

[Cha]

67. I know etherealtruth~

[NJCher]

68. I was just thinking

...we needed something like this, so thanks, Cha.


Cher

[Cha]

69. You're Most Welcome, Cher~

[NJCher]

87. our local public radio station

has for years had a show on MLK day where people call in with some type of personal observance about the day. People write poems, sing songs, tell personal experiences of being in the marches back in the 60s and 70s. They've discontinued it and I really miss it. Was always a good show.


Cher

[Cha]

88. It sounds like it was wonderful going over

the memories of MLK and his incredible challenges and victories!

[Cha]

70. ..

[Cha]

71. :( Ladies and Gentlemen I Give You MLK III.. On Voting Rights in America..

TOD

[Cha]

72. One Thing Will Never Change..

TheObamaDiary.com @TheObamaDiary
Follow
MLK Day truly brought out the dregs of humanity today, a sight to behold. But one thing will never change: Two Terms.
3:42 PM - 20 Jan 2014
23 Retweets 13 favorites
Reply
Retweet
Favorite

TOD

[Cha]

73. Another rare photo.. MLK graduating from Morehouse College..

3chicspolitico

[Cha]

76. ^^^^^^^^^!!

Young MLK @ Morehouse College Graduation~

[klook]

74. "In Song" -- so wonderful

Families that play music and sing together share a special bond. That is a beautiful scene.

[Cha]

75. I so agree with your assessment, klook!

[grahamhgreen]

78. We cal him DOCTOR King in ATL... Removing the DR. fromhis name is something that they like to do....

[Cha]

79. Good for you.. thanks for kicking my thread on Dr

Martin Luther King.

[grahamhgreen]

81. One more time for Dr. King.

[Coyotl]

80. K&R

[Cha]

83. thanks Coyotl.. here's another photo I just found..

link

[Cha]

84. February 24, 1956.. MLK ..

Martin Luther King Jr. sits for a police mugshot after his arrest for directing a citywide boycott of segregated buses on February 24, 1956.

[Behind the Aegis]

89. I am glad you were able to get these pics out there.

I searched a few sites to try and find some rarer photos so I could add, but you seemed to have them covered. It was a fitting tribute to a great man.

[Cha]

90. Thank you so much, Behind the Aegis..

I really felt good about it. I appreciate your and everyone's contribution on this DU Tribute Thread to Dr Martin Luther King!