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- StoryCorps Griot: Taylor and Bessie Rogers
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In 1968, 1,300 sanitation workers, most of whom were black, went on strike in Memphis, Tenn., protesting horrendous working conditions and low wages. Martin Luther King, Jr. went to Memphis to lend his support to the striking workers. Taylor Rogers, one of the men on strike, went to the Mason Temple on April 3, 1968, with his wife, Bessie, to hear King speak. What they heard is now known as the "I've been to the Mountaintop" speech -- the last that Dr. King would deliver.
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Piece Description
In 1968, 1,300 sanitation workers, most of whom were black, went on strike in Memphis, Tenn., protesting horrendous working conditions and low wages. Martin Luther King, Jr. went to Memphis to lend his support to the striking workers. Taylor Rogers, one of the men on strike, went to the Mason Temple on April 3, 1968, with his wife, Bessie, to hear King speak. What they heard is now known as the "I've been to the Mountaintop" speech -- the last that Dr. King would deliver.
Broadcast History
NPR's Morning Edition 1/13/06
Transcript
TR: I mean it was wall to wall with people.
BR: And it was stormin‚ and rainin. He preached and he said that uh,
TR: ‚I've been to the mountaintop.
BR: Oh, yeah.
MLK: Because I've been to the mountaintop‚
TR: ‚And I've looked over and I've seen the Promised Land.
MLK: And I've looked over and I've seen the Promised Land‚
TR: ‚I might not get there with you.‚
MLK: I may not get there with you‚
TR: But we will get there.
MLK: But I want you to know tonight that we, as a people, will get to
the Promised Land.
BR: And he was crying. Tears was rollin’ down his cheeks.
TR: Preachers were cryin’, people were cryin’, and everybody was cryin’
and…
BR: He really talked that night. I mean he really, really talked.
TR: You could tell by the expression on his face and the feeling and the
sound of his voice that he knew something was going to happen. He said,
cause, uh, ‚Ä...
Read the full transcript
Intro and Outro
INTRO:As we head into this long weekend marking the birthday of Martin Luther King, we’re going to meet a man who saw him at the end of his life. In 1968, 1300 sanitation workers went on strike in Memphis, Tennessee. Most of the workers were black. They were protesting job conditions and low wages. Martin Luther King, Jr., went to Memphis to lend his support to the striking workers.
One of them was Taylor Rogers. Recently Rogers told his story through StoryCorps. That’s the ongoing effort to record and preserve an oral history of America through the stories of everyday people. Rogers and his wife, Bessie, visited a StoryCorps booth in Memphis to talk about the strike and Dr. King’s visit. The Rogers were both at Mason Temple on April 3rd, 1968, when Martin Luther King delivered what would prove to be his final speech.
Taylor Rogers and his wife, Bessie, remembering Martin Luther King, Jr., and the 1968 Memphis Sanitation Workers’ Strike. StoryCorps has two mobile recording booths touring the country. If you’d like to find out how you can participate and have your interview archived at the Library of Congress, you can go to npr.org.
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Posted on March 29, 2006 at 10:09 PM | Permalink
Review of StoryCorps: Taylor and Bessie Rogers
A senior african-american couple recall their experience of hearing Martin Luther King Jr. speak the night before his assasination. It is a simple and moving accountting of an historical moment.
Play this on April 3rd, the anniversary of Dr King's death.
Just drop it into the two minute newshole during the morning or evening drive. It will speak for itself and will also provide a slightly different POV on the last hours of this american icon.