Dr. Carson will speak on campus on Jan. 25
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Clayborne Carson took the first steps toward his lifelong dedication. At the age of 19, Dr. Carson participated in the historic civil rights event, The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. There, Martin Luther King Jr., standing in the front of Lincoln Memorial, delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech.
Dr. Carson, being a freshman at a predominantly white college at the time, learned of the impact Dr. King had on the hundreds of thousands of African American citizens participating in the march. This monumental event sparked his growing interest in the Civil Rights Movement and eventually led Dr. Carson to become one of the foremost historians of Martin Luther King Jr.
After his experience at the march, Dr. Carson went on to earn his B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. at the University of California, Los Angeles while being heavily involved in continuing civil rights protests. He would later go on to teach and lecture across the country and internationally on his experience of the Civil Rights Movement and the legacy of Dr. King.
In 1985, Mrs. Coretta Scott King hand selected Dr. Carson to work on The Martin Luther King Papers Project; an authoritative collection of Dr. King’s speeches, sermons, correspondence, publications and unpublished writings. In addition, Dr. Carson has worked on numerous books, documentaries and even a musical play based on his professional study of Dr. King and the movements King further inspired.
Today, Dr. Carson is the Martin Luther King, Jr. Centennial Professor of History at Stanford University. He is also the Ronnie Lott Founding Director of the Martin Luther King Jr., Research and Education Institute where he works to continually expand the King Papers Project.
Dr. Clayborne Carson will give a lecture at Marquette University on Thursday, Jan. 25, at noon to 1:15 p.m. in the Marquette University Law School, Lubar Center. He will discuss Dr. King’s life and its impact on today’s communities. The event has sold out. More information can be found online.