Walk To Freedom

June 23, 1963, in Detroit’s Cobo Hall, I intensely listened to Martin Luther King, Jr. deliver his famous “I Have A Dream” speech, for what many historians claim was the first time.  Dr. King was in Detroit for the “Walk to Freedom” march that I coordinated.  I was on the stage with the members of the Board of Directors of the Detroit Council for Human Rights, I was the youngest member, looking out at the overflowing audience, drinking in the soul-stirring words. I became aware that I was passionately committed to tearing down the injustice of America’s racist society.  On that day in 1963, I also discovered the source of that passion as King’s words echoed in my mind.