MLK: The Future of Integration Speech at Manchester University

The 1960s were a time of great change and turmoil. The Civil Rights movement was at its height in the late 1960s, following the March on Washington in 1963, the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the passing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The leader of the Civil Rights movement was Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. who traveled the country giving speeches, often on college campuses, calling for social justice and equal rights.

On February 1, 1968, King delivered a speech at Manchester University in North Manchester, Indiana, a private university associated with the Church of the Brethren. King had led campaigns for racial justice in the South and delivered similar speeches at colleges around the country, including in nearby Fort Wayne in 1963.[1] His Manchester speech was on the future of integration in the United States, highlighting a hope that race relations and equality in this country would get better in the years to come. “We have come a long, long way, but we must honestly face the fact that all over America we still have a long, long way to go before the problem of racial injustice is solved.”[2]

Manchester’s religious founder, the Church of the Brethren, is “committed to peace” and is one of the historic peace churches along with the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and Mennonites.[3] Manchester University’s Peace Studies Institute and Program for Conflict Resolution was the first undergraduate Peace Studies program in the world. King’s message of non-violence was expected to resonate with Manchester faculty and students.[4] However, Dr. King’s speech was not met with all peaceful reactions. In preparation for an influx of demonstrators during King’s visit, tight security was imposed amid high tensions on campus and in the community of Manchester.[5] The President of the university, A. Blair Helman, received hate mail prior to and following Dr. King’s appearance.[6] Much of the negative reactions stemmed from King’s stance on the Vietnam War. In his speech, Dr. King mentioned his opposition to the war, stating that, “I am afraid that our national administration is more concerned about winning an ill-considered war in Vietnam than about winning the war against poverty right here at home. I raise my voice against that war because I have seen what it has done to our nation...It has diverted attention from civil rights.”[7]

Two months later, on April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee. His fight for civil rights and his powerful voice for social justice were silenced, but his legacy and message speak loud and clear today. Dr. King’s remarks at Manchester University was his last speech at a college campus, and the event is commemorated, with a bust in the likeness of King near the spot that he gave his address in 1968.[8]

[1] “Editorial: Half a Century Later, His Relevance Remains.” The Journal Gazette, 2018. Accessed April 22, 2020. https://www.journalgazette.net/opinion/editorials/20180115/half-a-century-laterhis-relevance-remains.
[2] Ibid.
[3] “Church of the Brethren peace heritage: A brief history”. Church of the Brethren. Accessed May 5, 2020. http://www.brethren.org/peace/heritage.html.
[4] “In the News, Black History Month: Where was MLK’s last campus address?” Manchester University, 2017. Accessed May 5, 2020. https://www.manchester.edu/about-manchester/news/news-articles/mlk-black-history-month-2018
[5] “Honoring Manchester’s Tradition of Peace and Justice.” Manchester University. Accessed April 22, 2020. https://www.manchester.edu/mlk50.
[6] Ibid
[7] King, Martin Luther, Jr. “The Future of Integration.” University Press of Kansas, Pp. 64. Accessed April 23, 2020. https://www.lib.kstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/MLKatKState.pdf.
[8] “MC to dedicate Martin Luther King sculpture on speech site Feb 28”. Manchester University. Accessed May 5, 2020. https://www.manchester.edu/news/Archives/MLKbust0207.htm.

Student Author: Robin Johnson
Faculty/Staff Editors: Dr. Ronald V. Morris, Dr. Kevin C. Nolan, and Christine Thompson
Graduate Assistant Researchers: Carrie Vachon and JB Bilbrey

PHOTO & VIDEO:
Martin Luther King, Jr., attributed to Nobel Foundation, Public domain, via Wikimedia commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Martin_Luther_King,_Jr..jpg