Remembering when Martin Luther King Jr. Spoke in NC State’s Reynolds Coliseum

On a day when we remember Martin Luther King Jr., you might not realize that the country-shaping Civil Rights leader once spoke in NC State’s legendary Reynolds Coliseum.

In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, take a look at this historic pic: MLK Jr. had actually spoken at our own Reynolds Coliseum in July 31st, 1966. To a crowd of 5,000, he called for people to support “our aspirations for freedom & human dignity.” #MLKDay pic.twitter.com/yjtHQk1Gkc

— New Student Programs (@NCStateNSP) January 21, 2019

Up until recently there have only been a few photos from King’s speech in Reynolds, but new footage has been found from the event.

On July 31st, 1966, Dr. King spoke to an integrated audience of an estimated 5,000 people in Reynolds Coliseum. Simultaneously, the Ku Klux Klan marched up-and-down Fayetteville St. in downtown Raleigh, in protest to his presence. The News & Observer sent 8 photographers to the KKK rally, and sent none to Reynolds Coliseum to cover King’s speech. In the N&O, there were ads from 4 churches denouncing King as a communist and anti-christ.

The night before King’s speech, there was an event in the iconic Memorial Auditorium portraying King as a communist.

Rather than a representative from NC State introducing King on their own campus, the President of Shaw University, Dr. James Cheek, introduced him.

King’s presence in North Carolina through the years wasn’t isolated to this one speech. In fact, his first “I have a dream” speech was in Rocky Mount on November 27th, 1962, nearly a year prior to his infamous speech on at the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963.

Here’s an excerpt of what he had to say that day in Rocky Mount:

Near the close he built toward these lines: “I have a dream that one day right here in Rocky Mount, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will meet at the table of brotherhood, knowing that one God brought man to the face of the Earth. I have a dream tonight that one day my little daughter and my two sons will grow up in a world not conscious of the color of their skin, but only conscious of the fact that they are members of the human race. . . .”

You can listen to it below.

As a pastor, I grieve that there were churches that denounced King that week. The integration they opposed is integral to the Gospel of Jesus. We needed to do better then, and we need to do better now. In my opinion, reconciliation, and the fighting of injustice is not optional for anyone that wants to call themselves Christian.

While we have a long way to go in our our society, I’m thankful that Raleigh and NC State aren’t in the same place they were back in 1966.