John Conyers: “I would like to just talk about the great events that occurred as I was watching the civil rights movement develop; that…”

“I would like to just talk about the great events that occurred as I was watching the civil rights movement develop; that is, with the coming of Dr. Martin Luther King, Detroit became a base for civil rights activity, and frequently there were fundraisers and church events that were attended by Dr. King, Reverend Andrew Young, Reverend Ralph Abernathy, and many others. Detroit became, along with New York and Los Angeles, a great center for support for Dr. King, which led to his civil rights march in Detroit down our main street, Woodward Avenue, in 1963, which had been the largest freedom march that had been held up until the March on Washington. There, we were treated in Detroit to hearing Dr. Martin Luther King's 'I have a dream' speech, which was in its formative stages there, but one cannot fail to pick that up. I was pleased to have been there. My interest in the civil rights movement, as one who went South, was emphasized by the coming on later of a young lady from Montgomery, Alabama, named Rosa Parks, who came forward and chose, for reasons I cannot explain, Detroit as her home after she led the bus march, the bus protests, in Alabama which had called Dr. King to its leadership and thrust him into prominence in the civil rights movement.”