Photo Slideshow: Civil rights and March on Washington

Aug. 28 will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. On this day in history, King delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. These archival images take a look back at civil rights events leading up to the march, as well as moments from that day.

A young usher, holding cap at right, stands solemnly with religious, civil rights and labor leaders on the platform in front of the Lincoln Memorial during the national anthem at the opening of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom program on Aug. 28, 1963. Five of the 10 chairmen of the march also on the platform were, from left to right: Whitney M. Young Jr., executive director of the National Urban League; the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference; Walter P. Reuther, president of the United Automobile Workers Union; the Rev. Eugene Carson Blake, chief executive officer of the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., and acting chairman of the National Council of Churches' Commission on Religion and Race; and, second from right, Rabbi Joachim Prinz, president of the American Jewish Congress. Religion News Service file photo

Aug. 28 will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. On this day in history, King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. These archival images take a look back at civil rights events leading up to the march, moments from that day, and the years after the march.

Photo credits: Religion News Service file photos, Library of Congress and ELCA Archives

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