August 28 Marks the Death of Emmett Till and the Anniversary of the I Have A Dream Speech

August 28 is a day when we commemorate both triumph and loss.

On this day in 1955, a 14-year-old Emmett Till was ripped away from his family’s home, beaten, and lynched based on a story that proved to be false. His mother Mamie’s decision to leave his casket open at his funeral forced many Americans to see the absolute brutality of the Jim Crow south for the first time.

On this day in 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., shared his dream of an America that valued all of its people and where equal talent received equal pay.

August 28 marks the 55th Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivering his “I Have a Dream” speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., during the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom” on August 28, 1963.

At the march, Dr. King delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech, in which he called for an end to racism. It still stands as one of the most famous speeches in history and a signature moment of the civil rights movement.