“All we say to America is, "Be true to what you said on paper."”

— Martin Luther King, Jr.

1960s, I've Been to the Mountaintop (1968)
Context: All we say to America is, "Be true to what you said on paper." If I lived in China or even Russia, or any totalitarian country, maybe I could understand the denial of certain basic First Amendment privileges, because they hadn't committed themselves to that over there. But somewhere I read of the freedom of assembly. Somewhere I read of the freedom of speech. Somewhere I read of the freedom of the press. Somewhere I read that the greatness of America is the right to protest for right. And so just as I say, we aren't going to let any injunction turn us around. We are going on.

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Martin Luther King, Jr. 658

American clergyman, activist, and leader in the American Ci… 1929–1968

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