To honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., here are some of his other lesser-known, but incredibly powerful speeches. During his lifetime, Dr. King refused to be limited by the categories by which others sought to confine him, his message, and his mission. These talks reveal Dr. King as a dynamic, multi-dimensional figure, far more complex and far-seeing than he is often portrayed in the media.
A Christmas Sermon on Peace and Non-Violence - Massey Lecture #5, aired on December 24th, 1967. The Massey Lectures is an annual five-part series of lectures given in Canada by distinguished writers, thinkers, and scholars who explore important ideas and issues of contemporary interest. You can also find the other four lectures given by Dr. King here.
What Is Your Life's Blueprint? - In this rare video, Dr. King speaks to students at Barratt Junior High School in Philadelphia on October 26, 1967
Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence - In this 1967 speech in New York, Dr. King illustrates the interconnection of war and oppression.
Our God Is Marching On - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a speech at the end of the Selma to Montgomery march on March 25, 1965, calling for an end to racial injustice and urging his listeners to continue the struggle for civil rights.
The American Dream - Two years after delivering his I Have A Dream speech during the 1963 March on Washington, Dr. King reflects on what he has learned about meaning of the American Dream.
The Three Evils of Society - In this deeply probing address Dr. King describes how, "We are now experiencing the coming to the surface of a triple prong sickness." He then diagnoses the illness as the interplay of militarism, poverty, and racism.
I've Been to the Mountaintop - The last two minutes of this speech are "media famous" because, given his coming assassination, it might appear that Dr. King was using the speech to predict his assassination. However, throughout his public life he was constantly under threat of being killed and often talked both in speeches and in private about the likelihood that he would be assassinated. Listening to the now largely unknown remainder of the speech reveals the real justice and anti-poverty purpose in his message. When King finished this last speech he would ever give, the crowd erupted in jubilation, cheering wildly. Hardly the reaction of a crowd whose beloved champion, as wrongly supposed, had used the speech to announce his imminent death.