What speech did Martin Luther King Jr. deliver at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963?
Answer
“I Have a Dream”
Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963.
King spoke during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a major civil-rights demonstration in the U.S. capital. The event called for civil-rights legislation, voting rights, economic opportunity, and an end to racial segregation and discrimination.
The speech drew on biblical language, American founding ideals, and the symbolism of the Lincoln Memorial. Its recurring “dream” passage expressed hope that the United States would fulfill its promises of equality and freedom. King’s delivery made the address one of the most widely remembered speeches in American history.
The speech was part of a broader movement rather than a standalone event. The March on Washington helped build public support for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, though those laws resulted from extended activism, congressional debate, and federal action.