What was the name of the 1968 labor protest by Black sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee?

The 1968 labor protest by Black sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee, was the Memphis sanitation strike.

The strike began on February 12, 1968, after two workers, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, were killed by malfunctioning garbage trucks. The workers sought recognition for their union, better wages, and safer working conditions. Their signs carried the phrase “I AM A MAN.”

Martin Luther King Jr. traveled to Memphis to support the strikers as part of his Poor People’s Campaign. He delivered his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech at Mason Temple on April 3, 1968.

King was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel the following day. The strike continued after his death and ended with a settlement that recognized the workers’ union and improved conditions. It was both a labor struggle and a civil rights campaign.