Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Death of Martin Luther King Jr.

Courtesy Special Collections

Martin Luther King Jr. visited Little Rock to attend Ernest Green's graduation from Little Rock Central. Pictured: King, Green, L.C. Bates, Daisy Bates and others.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Northwest Arkansas Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Council is declaring Wednesday, April 4, the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Rev. King, as “A Day of Peace.”

The council is also joining with the University of Arkansas to commemorate this day with a sacred moment of remembrance at 6:01 p.m. at the Fulbright Peace Fountain on campus. The bells at Old Main will ring out 39 times marking the time King was taken from us as well as his age at the time of the assassination.

Everyone in the community is invited to take part in this gathering and to honor King’s legacy by remembering some of his best known words:

• “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
• “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
• “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
• “The time is always right to do what is right.”
• “I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”
• “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
• “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
• “Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?’”

Looking to the future, King’s daughter, the Rev. Bernice A. King, has stated: “Working collaboratively, we will provide a blueprint for the next generation to lead humanity in a revolution of values.”