THE ET CETERA CHRONICLES - MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

THE FIRST PUBLIC SPEECH OF
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

     On April 17, 1944 the Colored Elks Clubs of Georgia held their state convention at First A.B. Church in Dublin.  The event was hosted by the Norman G. McCall Elks Lodge of Dublin.  The Georgia Elks clubs each sponsored a high school student in a statewide oratory contest.  The winner of the contest was from Booker T. Washington High School in Atlanta.  In his  speech, the fifteen-year-old student, who would enter Morehouse College in the fall, spoke on the topic of "The Negro and the Constitution."  

The young man called for the better health and education of his people.  He spoke of Christianity and the Golden Rule.  He urged fair play and free opportunities at home, the same as we were fighting for in Europe and Asia.  He suggested that if Negroes were given the franchise, "they will be vigilant and defend, even with their arms, the ark of federal liberty from treason and destruction by her enemies." Little did the audience realize what they were witnessing.   

In a compiled autobiography, the young man recalls that the reading of this essay was his first public political speech.  The young man spent the next twenty four years of his life fighting for the constitutional rights of the people of his race.  By now, I know you have guessed who he was.  The young man, who came to Dublin seventy four years ago, was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

While a student at Morehouse, King was mentored by the college's Dean of Men, Dr. Brailsford Brazeal, a native of Laurens County.  Brazeal even convinced skeptical admissions officers at Crozer Seminary that King was truly a gifted and promising student, despite his average grades in college.

During his travels, Dr. King made many stops in Dublin to visit his old friend and adviser H.H. Dudley.  Dudley's establishments were among the few which served African-Americans along Highway 80 from Macon to Dublin.

So you see, our area has a small, but profound impact, on the future of the leader of the Civil Rights movement in America and the future of the world as well.