Students chant "We Shall Overcome" as they march around the campus.

Peaceful marchers pay tribute to Dr. King

A crisp spring wind whipped a flag flying at half mast Friday, April 5, 1968, in front of the Administration Building. Beneath the flag lay a wreath of white carnations with the inscription, "In Memory of Dr. Martin Luther King."

Nearby, a quiet crowd of 1,750 students, faculty members, administrators and religious leaders gathered on the Union Building patio to begin a memorial service for the slain Negro leader.

And before the afternoon ended, the group, led by a motorcycle policeman, marched peacefully around the campus chanting, "We Shall Overcome."

The marchers, who walked four and five abreast, stretched more than four blocks long at one point during the march. As the march progressed, more students joined the ranks.

A Negro student told the crowd at the memorial service in front of the UB that "There is no difference between the poverty and slums of the ghettos of Detroit than those of Southeast Denton." The speeches were interrupted by outbursts of cheers from the crowd.

Switching to the national scene, the question was asked, "How can America justify defending people 10,000 miles away when she denies the rights of people who have shed blood and tears for her?"

The president of the Negro group, Afro-American Student Union, said equal rights for minorities could be achieved through "education, unity and togetherness."

His speech, which followed a recording of Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech, ended with a somber shout of "Black brothers and sisters - together now and forever!"

The tension was relieved when Marvin Peterson, a Negro trumpet player, told the crowd, "I really love you all." Then he played his arrangement of "Brotherhood."

At the end of the march, the procession stopped in front of the half-raised flag at the Administration Building and said a silent prayer for the slain Negro leader.

The Yucca, 1969
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