martin luther king jr vietnam war speech transcript

0000001427 00000 n And let's see if we can get another caller on the line. 0000011068 00000 n 0000007566 00000 n He summed up this aspect by saying, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death. If Americas soul becomes totally poisoned, part of the autopsy must read Vietnam. The only change came from America as we increased our troop commitments in support of governments which were singularly corrupt, inept and without popular support. Let us not join those who shout war and through their misguided passions urge the United States to relinquish its participation in the United Nations. Martin Luther King Jr. on the Vietnam War "The greatest irony and tragedy of all is that our nation, which initiated so much of the revolutionary spirit of the modern world, is now cast in the. Thank you. This is Howard, which you know me. Had the president stopped by giving Martin King his just respect - as he did, to his credit - it would have been okay. My third reason moves to an even deeper level of awareness, for it grows out of my experience in the ghettoes of the North over the last three years especially the last three summers. So we have been repeatedly faced with the cruel irony of watching Negro and white boys on TV screens as they kill and die together for a nation that has been unable to seat them together in the same schools. And about a month after that speech was given, I was wounded. Indeed, you play parts of President Obama's speech to the Nobel Committee there in Stockholm where he received the award. So we watch them in brutal solidarity burning the huts of a poor village, but we realize that they would never live on the same block in Detroit. Due to the Vietnam War is that plenty of individuals, both Americans and Vietnamese were killed. One of the things, I hope, Neal, will happen here is that when people get a chance to see the special, they will be moved - I think they will be - to Google or Bing, whatever search engine you use, to go online, because the speech is so readily available, Neal, as you know. That's the problem with it. Surely we must understand their feelings even if we do not condone their actions. That Vietnam was a mistake. So, that's all I had to say. The tide in the affairs of men does not remain at the flood; it ebbs. But certainly one of the greatest orators of our time. The oceans of history are made turbulent by the ever-rising tides of hate. I guess the question now is whether or not Afghanistan is a war of necessity or a war of choice. So even McNamara eventually comes around to that point. Indeed, their questions suggest that they do not know the world in which they live. For those who ask the question, Arent you a civil rights leader? and thereby mean to exclude me from the movement for peace, I have this further answer. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. It was sending their sons and their brothers and their husbands to fight and to die in extraordinarily high proportions relative to the rest of the population. We most provide the medical aid that is badly needed, making it available in this country if necessary. King led his first anti-war march in Chicago on 25 March 1967, and reinforced the connection between war abroad and injustice at home: The bombs in Vietnam explode at homethey destroy the dream and possibility for a decent America (Dr. I think of them too because it is clear to me that there will be no meaningful solution there until some attempt is made to know them and hear their broken cries. Check your local listings. M ost Americans remember Martin Luther King Jr. for his dream of what this country could be, a nation where his children would "not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content. Thanks, as always for your time. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Beyond Vietnam" was a powerful and angry speech that raged against the war. Soon we would be paying almost the full costs of this tragic attempt at recolonization. He was one of the most important and influential Civil Rights leaders in the 1950s and 1960s. And when you see the piece on "Lens" tonight that's the part of the speech that set off so many of those who are in King's inner circle, so many scholars who have written about King. W. E. B. And his argument, basically, was that I cannot, as a practitioner and a true believer in nonviolence, espouse that nonviolent philosophy in our movement and then somehow sit idly by when I see violence being engaged around the world. 0000009985 00000 n This speech was written and basically read word for word so that they could have a copy to give to mainstream newspapers across the country for their consideration, because King did not want to be misquoted Mr. SMILEY: or misunderstood, although that didn't work. A few years ago there was a shining moment in that. If we do not act we shall surely be dragged down the long dark and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight. War is not the answer. The image of America will never again be the image of revolution, freedom and democracy, but the image of violence and militarism.. And they are surely right to wonder what kind of new government we plan to help form without them the only party in real touch with the peasants. V)U5v\@apkk;#WF. But they asked and rightly so what about Vietnam? Martin Luther King's Speech Against the Vietnam War by David Bromwich May 16, 2008 O ne of the greatest speeches by Martin Luther King, Jr., "A Time to Break Silence," was delivered at Riverside Church, New York City, on April 4, 1967. And I believe everyone has a duty to be in both the civil-rights and peace movements. By the time King made the "Beyond Vietnam" speech, Smiley tells host Neal Conan, "he had fallen off already the list of most-admired Americans as tallied by Gallup every year." Exactly one year before his assassination, on April 4, 1967, Rev. I speak for those whose land is being laid waste, whose homes are being destroyed, whose. BlackPast.org is a 501(c)(3) non-profit and our EIN is 26-1625373. In that address, he articulated his reasons for his opposition to the Southeast Asian conflict. Fifty years ago in 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr.. I come to this magnificent house of worship tonight because my conscience leaves me no other choice. In 1968, King was planning a national occupation of Washington, D., to be called the Poor People's Campaign, when he was assassinated on April 4 in . But instead there came the United States, determined that Ho should not unify the temporarily divided nation, and the peasants watched again as we supported one of the most vicious modern dictators our chosen man, Premier Diem. So they go primarily women and children and the aged. They asked if our own nation wasnt using massive doses of violence to solve its problems, to bring about the changes it wanted. This Hindu-Moslem-Christian-Jewish-Buddhist belief about ultimate reality is beautifully summed up in the first epistle of Saint John: Let us love one another; for love is God and everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. And thirdly, I think the main point here in this MLK "Beyond Vietnam" speech is that there is another way. A true revolution of values will lay hands on the world order and say of war: This way of settling differences is not just. This business of burning human beings with napalm, of filling our nations homes with orphans and widows, of injecting poisonous drugs of hate into veins of people normally humane, of sending men home from dark and bloody battlefields physically handicapped and psychologically deranged, cannot be reconciled with wisdom, justice and love. But two, to the audio, there are only less than 10 minutes of this speech that got covered. It can never be saved so long as it destroys the deepest hopes of men the world over. On April 4, 1967, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a controversial sermon opposing the Vietnam War at Riverside Church in Morningside Heights, then helped lead a large antiwar march from Central Park to the United Nations later that month. Mr. SMILEY: Yeah, Walt, I thank you for sharing that story as well, for being courageous to tell it, number one. Cypress Hall D, 466 Via Ortega, Stanford, CA 94305-4146 His speech appears below. His speech appears below. This speech is not addressed to Hanoi or to the National Liberation Front. dH(*b(jGB@'k1zTR~{dA9|\b. [24], King's stance on Vietnam encouraged Allard K. Lowenstein, William Sloane Coffin and Norman Thomas, with the support of anti-war Democrats, to attempt to persuade King to run against President Johnson in the 1968 United States presidential election. Life often leaves us standing bare, naked and dejected with a lost opportunity. And King had preached at this church any number of times before, of course. Let us hope that this spirit will become the order of the day. It is a sad fact that, because of comfort, complacency, a morbid fear of communism, and our proneness to adjust to injustice, the Western nations that initiated so much of the revolutionary spirit of the modern world have now become the arch anti-revolutionaries. If we continue, there will be no doubt in my mind and in the mind of the world that we have no honorable intentions in Vietnam. This is the calling of the sons of God, and our brothers wait eagerly for our response. We must be prepared to match actions with words by seeking out every creative means of protest possible. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott, organized the 1963 March on Washington, advocated for civil disobedience and. The Institute cannot give permission to use or reproduce any of the writings, statements, or images of Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. [16][17] King began to speak of the need for fundamental changes in the political and economic life of the nation, and more frequently expressed his opposition to the war and his desire to see a redistribution of resources to correct racial and economic injustice. In a way we were agreeing with Langston Hughes, that black bard of Harlem, who had written earlier: O, yes, I say it plain, America never was America to me, And yet I swear this oath America will be! Because, to your point now, one, I want people to go online and read the speech so you can see the text for yourself. Appreciate it. The world now demands a maturity of America that we may not be able to achieve. 0000002784 00000 n Although the peace community lauded Kings willingness to take a public stand against the war in Vietnam, many within the civil rights movement further distanced themselves from his stance. Part of our ongoing commitment might well express itself in an offer to grant asylum to any Vietnamese who fears for his life under a new regime which included the Liberation Front. They will be concerned about Thailand and Cambodia. 0000013309 00000 n ", After King delivered the speech, Smiley reports, "168 major newspapers the next day denounced him." A call for equality and freedom, it became one of the defining moments of the civil rights movement and one of the most iconic speeches in American history. Of course, he's assassinated in Memphis a year to the day later after giving this speech. I want to thank you, as I know listeners do as well, for your service to this country. Less than two weeks after leading his first Vietnam demonstration, on 4 April 1967, King made his best known and most comprehensive statement against the war. 0000002025 00000 n Martin Luther King April 4, 1967 Riverside Church, New York City . [19][20], In a 1952 letter to Coretta Scott, he said: "I imagine you already know that I am much more socialistic in my economic theory than capitalistic"[21] In one speech, he stated that "something is wrong with capitalism" and claimed, "There must be a better distribution of wealth, and maybe America must move toward a democratic socialism. I join with you in this meeting because I am in deepest agreement with the aims and work of the organization which has brought us together: Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam. Sermons and speeches of Martin Luther King Jr. "Vincent Harding dies at 82; historian wrote controversial King speech", "Vincent Harding, author of Martin Luther King Jr.'s antiwar speech, dies", "The Rev. Dr. King is trying to get the point across that our country is being unfair to others. Beyond the calling of race or nation or creed is this vocation of sonship and brotherhood, and because I believe that the Father is deeply concerned especially for his suffering and helpless and outcast children, I come tonight to speak for them. He had fallen off already the list, as you mentioned, had already fallen off the list of the most admired Americans as tallied by Gallup every year. 0000004834 00000 n In 1957 a sensitive American official overseas said that it seemed to him that our nation was on the wrong side of a world revolution. And that is precisely what concerned Dr. King so much, that these young boys were being sent halfway around the world to fight a war that was unwinnable, that resources were being used there that should've been used here at home. Declare a unilateral cease-fire in the hope that such action will create the atmosphere for negotiation. It seemed as if there was a real promise of hope for the poorboth black . Accuracy and availability may vary. For nine years following 1945 we denied the people of Vietnam the right of independence. A genuine revolution of values means in the final analysis that our loyalties must become ecumenical rather than sectional. "[9] He stated that North Vietnam "did not begin to send in any large number of supplies or men until American forces had arrived in the tens of thousands", and accused the U.S. of having killed a million Vietnamese, "mostly children. Paul A. Schuette, King Preaches on Non-Violence at Police-Guarded Howard Hall, Washington Post, 3 March 1965. U.S. House Select Committee on Assassinations, Martin Luther King Jr. Records Collection Act, King: A Filmed Record Montgomery to Memphis, The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306, Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story, Joseph Schwantner: New Morning for the World; Nicolas Flagello: The Passion of Martin Luther King. All rights reserved. CONAN: And I think a lot of people will see your parallels regarding Iraq, where, indeed, the United States was the aggressor in that conflict. This speech was enormously controversial. When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. Read The Full Text And Listen To Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Beyond Vietnam" Speech. I Have a Dream, speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., that was delivered on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. This is an excellent Common Core-aligned primary source from Martin Luther King speaking about his stance on the Vietnam War. 39 0 obj << /Linearized 1 /O 44 /H [ 1739 286 ] /L 149455 /E 105346 /N 8 /T 148557 >> endobj xref 39 54 0000000016 00000 n So it was a great turnout. His wife, Coretta Scott King, took a more active role in opposing the war, speaking at a rally at the Washington Monument on 27 November 1965 with Benjamin Spock, the renowned pediatrician and anti-war activist, and joined in other demonstrations. 0000002516 00000 n Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305. "[22] Kings opposition to the war provoked criticism from members of Congress, the press, and from his civil rights colleagues who argued that expanding his civil rights message to include foreign affairs would harm the black freedom struggle in America. . Smiley spoke with both scholars and friends of King, including Cornel West, Vincent Harding and Susannah Heschel. Dr. King in a March 25, 1967 antiwar march in Chicago. 0000002964 00000 n 0000040748 00000 n Martin Luther King, Jr., gave a speech that may have helped put a target on . There is nothing to keep us from molding a recalcitrant status quo with bruised hands until we have fashioned it into a brotherhood. We encouraged them with our huge financial and military supplies to continue the war even after they had lost the will. He knows the bombing and shelling and mining we are doing are part of traditional pre-invasion strategy. For nine years we vigorously supported the French in their abortive effort to recolonize Vietnam. hide caption. The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light. We in the West must support these revolutions. 0000001739 00000 n He would no longer be respected. I've always argue that Dr. King is the greatest American we've ever produced. We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. Mr. SMILEY: It's a powerful point made by Clayborne Carson at Stanford who is in charge, as you know, Neal, of the King papers. This quote is from a sermon by Dr. King on April 30, 1967 at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, drawing from his infamous April 4 sermon at Riverside Church. The moving finger writes, and having writ moves on We still have a choice today; nonviolent coexistence or violent co-annihilation. King, Excerpts, Address at mass rally on 12 August 1965, 13 August 1965, MLKJP-GAMK. Peace and civil rights dont mix, they say. Set a date that we will remove all foreign troops from Vietnam in accordance with the 1954 Geneva agreement. We are at the moment when our lives must be placed on the line if our nation is to survive its own folly. Let me say this right quick: The comparisons between what King was addressing then about militarism, poverty and racism sound familiar 45 years later. What do the peasants think as we ally ourselves with the landlords and as we refuse to put any action into our many words concerning land reform? On the evening of April 4, 1967, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King lent his full-throated oratory to a growing chorus of opposition to the rapidly expanding American role in the Vietnam War. And King was prescient on this. P: (650) 723-2092 | F: (650) 723-2093 | kinginstitute@stanford.edu| Campus Map. In the north, where our bombs now pummel the land, and our mines endanger the waterways, we are met by a deep but understandable mistrust. Not only that, but then-President Lyndon Johnson disinvited King to the White House. Carson and Holloran, 1998. Over the past two years, as I have moved to break the betrayal of my own silences and to speak from the burnings of my own heart, as I have called for radical departures from the destruction of Vietnam, many persons have questioned me about the wisdom of my path. For from his view we may indeed see the basic weaknesses of our own condition, and if we are mature, we may learn and grow and profit from the wisdom of the brothers who are called the opposition. So, too, with Hanoi. The peasants watched as all this was presided over by U.S. influence and then by increasing numbers of U.S. troops who came to help quell the insurgency that Diems methods had aroused. Martin Luther King Jr. held his acceptance speech in the auditorium of the University of Oslo on 10 December 1964. It was a tactical mistake. King to Weigh Civil Disobedience If War Intensifies, New York Times, 2 April 1967. I'm Neal Conan. If we love one another God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. What of the National Liberation Front that strangely anonymous group we call VC or Communists? They wander into the towns and see thousands of the children, homeless, without clothes, running in packs on the streets like animals. In "People and Peace, not Profits and War," Shirley Chisholm repeats the words "two more years" (42). Challenges of the final years of Martin Luther King, Jr. Hundreds of folks listened outside on loudspeakers. [27] Thich Nhat Hanh, who publicly held a news conference in Chicago with King in 1966, was acknowledged for urging King to oppose the Vietnam War. For as popular as King was, he was a Nobel laureate, there were only one or two news crews who actually came to see the speech that night, Neal. Ho Chi Minh has watched as America has spoken of peace and built up its forces, and now he has surely heard of the increasing international rumors of American plans for an invasion of the north. "[10], King also criticized American opposition to North Vietnam's land reforms. Is our nation planning to build on political myth again and then shore it up with the power of new violence? Martin Luther King's Beyond Vietnam Speech is in many ways even more relevant today than in 1967. . 2. In December 1966, testifying before a congressional subcommittee on budget priorities, King argued for a rebalancing of fiscal priorities away from Americas obsession with Vietnam and toward greater support for anti-poverty programs at home (Semple, Dr. 0000023610 00000 n A complete unit of instruction - include ALL answer documents - comparing and contrasting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and Malcom X's early lives & speeches.This unit of study, which can be taught as a complete unit, or separated into 13 distinct activities . The march was organized by the Spring Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam and initiated by its chairman, James Bevel. James L. Bevel dies at 72; civil rights activist and top lieutenant to King", "Martin Luther King Jr. made our nation uncomfortable", "The Uncompromising Anti-Capitalism of Martin Luther King Jr", "Why Martin Luther King Didn't Run for President", "Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen Master and Political Reformer, Dies at 95", "The Story Of King's 'Beyond Vietnam' Speech", "Dragons, legos, and solitary: Ai Weiwei's transformative Alcatraz exhibition", Full transcript of the speech from Commondreams.org. Fifty-years ago in April 1967, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered one of his most memorable, if not controversial sermons, at Riverside Church just steps away from the Columbia University campus.

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