Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Connected With Black Radio

Dr. King (Nobel Foundation)

Yesterday (1/21) was MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY (MLK DAY).  A day to remember the Rev. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR's contributions that changed the thinking of our nation and the world.

His legacy of non-violent protest advocating for change is still used on all sides of the cultural and political spectrum. ALL ACCESS Urban Editor SAM WEAVER shares DR. KING's relationship with Black Radio.

The Rev. Dr. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. opened minds, hearts, and doors with the Civil Rights Movement in the 60s. He helped us understand the humanity of man and to see the possibilities for humankind to do better. 

Dr. KING frequently pointed out the important role Black Owned & Operated and Black programmed radio played in getting his message to the masses.

WALKER SMITH wrote a book, "MELLOW YELLOW," The Incredible life story of Black radio legend JACK "THE RAPPER' GIBSON.  In the book, GIBSON shared a story on his experiences with DR. KING and getting the word out in ATLANTA.

GIBSON said:

The Civil Rights Movement was beginning to rumble in the '50s, at the same time I was at WERD.  I didn't know it at the time, but I was sitting smack in the middle of history.  Well, one floor up, to be exact.  WERD had moved up the street from 274-1/2 Auburn Avenue to 330 Auburn Avenue, or Sweet Auburn Avenue, as we called it.  We shared the building with the newly-formed SOUTHERN CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE. The bottom floor was theirs and we occupied the upstairs space.

There was always some kind of bustling activity going on downstairs -- strategy meetings, plans for boycotts, speech writing and the training of new volunteers.  So, all the WERD employees were getting all the breaking news first.  And what we didn't hear about at the office, we found out over a big plate of ribs, because we all ate down the street at “BEN REED's Houston Street RIB SHACK.”  Ain't that a killer?  There we were, greasin' down with Dr. KING while he strategized, and not one of us had an inkling that what he was doing would change the world.

DR. KING traveled a lot during that time, but when I knew he was in his office, I'd take a break from my program and say, “And now, here's a word from the Reverend DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING.”  Then I'd dangle the microphone down through an open window to his office window, and he'd grab it and say something inspirational to the listeners.  We were short on budget, but long on imagination, because we found all kinds of ways to keep ourselves going through those tough times.

In AUGUST 1967, DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. addressed the NATRA (NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF TV AND RADIO ANNOUNCERS) convention in ATLANTA.  His speech stressed the importance of Black Radio Announcers in the struggle for civil rights.

Here's DR. KING's entire address:

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