The Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr: Does anyone actually remember?
Was the Death of MLK that Newsworthy?
By:Anthony Austin
This Friday marks the 40th anniversary of the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Television specials are being advertised and articles are popping up everywhere commemorating his death. Dr. King was assassinated on April 4, 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee. He fought to end segregation and racial discrimination in a non-violent manner. I asked several people if they could remember the death of MLK. The answers surprised me. It left me wondering if anyone actually remembers his death.
Linda Grandison was 11-years-old in April of 1968. She was in 5th grade at the time in a small Texas school when Dr. King was shot.
“I didn’t hear anything until I got home and saw it on the news”, said Linda Grandison, “I don’t remember it being that big of a deal here, not even the next day.”
Grandison is black. The town she grew up in and still lives today is mostly white. However, there is one death that she remembers vividly.
“I will never forget the death of JFKand his brother”, said Grandison, “Everyone was so sad here for a long time.”
Her 73-year-old mother doesn’t remember the death of King either.
“I heard it the same way she did, on the news that evening.” said Ruby Mackey.
Mackey worked in a doctor’s office and doesn’t remember anyone saying a word about it. But like her daughter, there is one death she remembers quite well.
“The death of JFKwas major around here”, said Mackey, “I remember one lady with a sad look on her face coming into the doctor’s office saying did you hear?!, did you hear!? JFK is dead!”
While the death of JFK is a memory engraved in their brains, the death of Dr. King is not. The impact they said he had on the world was important. However, they just didn’t feel a connection with him.
“It’s a shame we can’t remember his death”, said Linda Grandison, “but he just seemed like another man at the time fighting for what he believed in.”
