Quoted: If MLK had not been killed, do you think we would even know who he is today? Would he be another Jesse or Al? Or is he just a martyr b/c he was killed by whitey?

I met the man.  Though definitely not a saint, he truly did believe in racial unity not division.

I'm afraid his message is lost on todays world.

Tj

Its kind of a funny story.  He led a peace march to my hometown.  No celebrities ever came there nor did we have any real racial problems then.  It was a small segregated town but the type town that when the white pool was too crowded or you didn't have money, white kids would go swim in the black pool.  We did have separate schools but no separate facilities like restaurants or water fountains.  It was a city that pretty much was segregated because well that's just the way things were done not really a division or hatred.  That all came after forced integration.  

He was met at a store parking lot by the mayor and highschool band where he was given the key to city.  

His march was actually suppose to go farther but I head him say, "I think we went one city too far already."  After a speech, he turned the march back around and half because I thought it cool and half it was the same way I need to go home.  I tagged along.  Being young then, he took a liking to me and allowed me to walk along with him.

It was kind of strange though.  The media had played the whole thing up as death and destruction was coming our way.  Many people hid in their homes expecting the worst.  All that gloom and doom simply didn't happen and his ten mile march I guess lost in history now due to the lack of anything happening.  

His march started in Huntington WV and into KY just a couple towns in.  They have started  commemorating the event in Huntington again with a march but its really short now and very few people really attend.  Not too many attended then either.  There were more people greeting him than marched with him by far.  

I can't remember the year, but do remember it was the same year the Beatles made their infamous statement about being more popular than Jesus which was also taken out of context by the media.  I remember because I went to the album burning to scarf up on albums.  

Tj