This weekend more than 100,000 people are expected to gather on the National Mall to mark the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King’s landmark “I have a dream” speech. But it won’t be all celebration.
“Obviously we’re commemorating the 50th anniversary,” Lee Saunders, President of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees told MSNBC’s Chris Jansing. “But we’ve got to rededicate ourselves to the fight that continues, and that fight is for economic justice and the creation of good quality jobs in America.”
“We have come a long way since the first March on Washington, but we still have a long way to go,” said Saunders.
Dr. King’s son Martin Luther King, III believes that the United States again has found itself at a critical impasse.
“This is one of the most terrible times as we approach this anniversary,” said King. He cited the issues of gun violence, education, and the Voting Rights Act.
“We’re a great country,” said King. “We have the ability, but we must match that ability with will.”
To cap off the week-long celebration, the nation’s first black president will deliver a speech at the Lincoln Memorial, a speech likely made possible by the efforts of those who marched 50 years ago.
John Axelrod