Historical Context
It was the largest-ever civil rights gathering at the time with an estimated 250,000 people travelling from all over the US to attend. The idea for the march came originally from labor organizer A. Philip Randolph who became its chief organizer and was organized in just three months. The marchers actually started marching without their leaders, who were meeting with members of Congress, who then had to catch up to the march, where they linked arms at the head of the procession.
The march was aimed at supporting President John F. Kennedy's Civil Rights Bill, then going through Congress. Marchers made their way from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. It was there that one of the marches' leaders Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech carried live on TV.
Photo Info
Date taken: August 28, 1963
Location taken: Washington D. C., USA
Related Events
- 1963-08-28 Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his "I have a dream" speech addressing the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom civil rights march at Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.
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