Anybody Here? Seen My Old, Martin?


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October 8th 2019
Published: September 28th 2019
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Assuming you were around in the Sixties, you know the 1968 song, "Abraham, Martin, and John", written by Dick Holler, and sung by Dion. It is a tribute to four assassinated Americans, all great icons of social change, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, and the Kennedy brothers. The song was written in response to the assassination of Dr. King and Senator Kennedy. Here are the lyrics. It is a powerful song. Has anybody here seen my old friend Abraham?Can you tell me where he's gone?He freed a lot of peopleBut it seems the good die youngBut I just looked around and he's goneHas anybody here seen my old friend John?Can you tell me where he's gone?He freed a lot of people<br style="box-sizing: border-box; color:򥌺 font-family: Verdana,Sans-Serif; font-size: 13px;" />But it seems the good die youngBut I just looked around and he's goneHas anybody here seen my old friend Martin?Can you tell me where he's gone?He freed a lot of peopleBut it seems the good die youngBut I just looked around and he's goneDidn't you love the things that they stood for?Didn't they try to find some good for you and me?And we'll be freeSomeday soon, it's gonna beOne day<br style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #676666; font-family: Verdana,Sans-Serif; font-size: 13px;" />Has anybody here seen my old friend Bobby?Can you tell me where he's gone?I thought I saw him walkin'Up over the hillWith Abraham, Martin and John Well, I am in Atlanta to visit the Martin Luther King Center. The King Library and Archives are the largest repository of primary source materials on Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement. The center's archives also houses more than 200 oral history interviews with Dr. King's teachers, friends, family, and civil rights associates. The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change was established in 1968 by his widow, Coretta Scott King. Nearly a million people make the same pilgrimage that I am making today. A few years back, while I was in Memphis, I could not bring myself to visit the Lorraine Motel, where Dr. King was shot and killed. The King Center is dedicated to educating the world on the life, legacy and teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., inspiring new generations to carry forward his unfinished work, strengthen causes and empower change-makers who are continuing his efforts today. The King Center will seek with integrity to extend Martin Luther King’s best hopes and deeds. What we see beginning now is no dead monument, but a living memorial filled with all the vitality that was his, a center of human endeavor, committed to the causes for which he lived and died. While I am on my visit, I want each of you to read his six principles of nonviolence: <ol style="color:񎸺 font-family: " segoe ui","segoe ui web (west european)","segoe ui",-apple-system,blinkmacsystemfont,"roboto","helvetica neue",sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
• Nonviolence is a way of life for courageous people.
• Nonviolence seeks to win friendship and understanding.
• Nonviolence seeks to defeat injustice, not people.
• Nonviolence holds that suffering can educate and transform.
• Nonviolence chooses love not hate.
• Nonviolence believes that the universe is on the side of justice.

The King Center consists of several buildings, including Dr. King's boyhood home, and the original Ebenezer Baptist Church, where he was baptized and where is father and he were both pastors. I have wanted to visit for quite a long time. The visitor center also contains a museum that chronicles the American Civil Rights Movement, and the path of Dr. King's life. There is also a firehouse, a gift shop, and the "I Have a Dream" Garden. as well as a tribute to Mohandas K. Gandhi, and the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame. This will make my trip to Atlanta complete.

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