President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama participate in a community service project at Leckie Elementary school in celebration of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service and in honor of Dr. King’s life and legacy
Pete Souza: The President reacts after getting beat in Rock Paper Scissors while participating in a service project at a local school on MLK day.
Roy Reed: Julian Bond, Former N.A.A.C.P. Chairman And Civil Rights Leader, Dies At 75
Julian Bond, a former chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, a charismatic figure of the 1960s civil rights movement, a lightning rod of the anti-Vietnam War campaign and a lifelong champion of equal rights for minorities, died on Saturday night, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. He was 75. Mr. Bond died in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., after a brief illness, the center said in a statement Sunday morning. He was one of the original leaders of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, while he was a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta. He moved from the militancy of the student group to the top leadership of the establishmentarian N.A.A.C.P. Along the way, he was a writer, poet, television commentator, lecturer, college teacher, and persistent opponent of the stubborn remnants of white supremacy.
He also served for 20 years in the Georgia Legislature, mostly in conspicuous isolation from white colleagues who saw him as an interloper and a rabble-rouser. Mr. Bond’s wit, cool personality and youthful face became familiar to millions of television viewers during the 1960s and 1970s; he was described as dashing, handsome and urbane. On the strength of his personality and quick intellect, he moved to the center of the civil rights action in Atlanta, the unofficial capital of the movement, at the height of the struggle for racial equality in the early 1960s. Moving beyond demonstrations, he became a founder, with Morris Dees, of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a legal advocacy organization in Montgomery, Ala. Mr. Bond was its president from 1971 to 1979 and remained on its board for the rest of his life.
When he was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1965 — along with seven other black members — furious white members of the House refused to let him take his seat, accusing him of disloyalty. He was already well known because of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee’s stand against the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War. That touched off a national drama that ended in 1966, when the Supreme Court in a unanimous decision ordered the legislature to seat him, saying it had denied him freedom of speech. He went on to serve 20 years in the two houses of the legislature. As a lawmaker, he sponsored bills to establish a sickle cell anemia testing program and to provide low-interest home loans to low-income Georgians. He also helped create a majority-black congressional district in Atlanta.
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Julian Bond, a former N.A.A.C.P. chairman and civil rights leader, has died at 75 nyti.ms/1Nyin6h http://t.co/w3qHEqfT9G
— The New York Times (@nytimes) August 16, 2025
The NAACP mourns the passing of Chairman Julian Bond, civil rights titan and our brother. May he rest in eternal peace.
— NAACP (@NAACP) August 16, 2025
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Julian Bond was one of a kind. We worked together in the Civil Rights Movement and he became one of my closest and dearest friends.
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) August 16, 2025
We went through a difficult period during our campaign for Congress in 1986, but many years ago we emerged even closer.
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) August 16, 2025
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Julian was so smart, so gifted, and so talented. He was deeply committed to making our country a better country.
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) August 16, 2025
Julian Bond's leadership and his spirit will be deeply missed.
— John Lewis (@repjohnlewis) August 16, 2025
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"Julian Bond helped change this country for the better. And what better way to be remembered than that." —@POTUS: http://t.co/Td1ig20iSz
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) August 16, 2025
Julian Bond & @repjohnlewis registering black voters in the South in early 1970s with the Voter Education Project http://t.co/UDdPDQeQCA
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) August 16, 2025
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Julian Bond at the GA State House when the assembly voted to bar him from his seat due to his anti-war stance, 1966. http://t.co/JagdvAeNtg
— Robert Greene II (@robgreeneII) August 16, 2025
Julian Bond's lifetime can't be summarized in a Tweet. All we can say is thank you & a job well done. Rest in power. http://t.co/3tJlOxEEX5
— Justice League NYC (@NYjusticeleague) August 16, 2025
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We’re very sad to announce the passing of civil rights icon Julian Bond. We’ve lost a champion sp.lc/QX8aB http://t.co/FIuuSnL8lz
— SPLC (@splcenter) August 16, 2025
Remembering Julian Bond: profile of the civil rights leader before his 30th birthday in 1970. nyti.ms/1DVg4dC http://t.co/qI1dBmJk9C
— NYT Archives (@NYTArchives) August 16, 2025
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1989: Julian Bond delivered the dedication speech at the @CivilRightsCntr in Montgomery. Read: sp.lc/QXshR http://t.co/ftZygctUZm
— SPLC (@splcenter) August 16, 2025
Civil Rights Icon & Longtime @NAACP executive Julian Bond has passed. MLK to President @BarackObama #inspiration http://t.co/a1lz60uBlK
— ESHE MAGAZINE (@ESHEmagazine) August 16, 2025
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You can watch parts 2-6 by clicking on the video and watching it on Youtube
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#JulianBond, a friend & fellow traveler who with courage, set the moral & academic tone of our generation. RIP http://t.co/V2OKZMYNiW
— Rev Jesse Jackson Sr (@RevJJackson) August 16, 2025
Sad to hear that Julian Bond (civil rights activist/NAACP board chairman) has passed away. Condolences to his family. http://t.co/1ORiclI6p0
— Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) August 16, 2025
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See civil rights leader Julian Bond's life in photos ti.me/1HPsgr7
— TIME.com (@TIME) August 16, 2025
So profoundly sad to learn of the passing of the great Julian Bond. nbcnews.com/news/us-news/j… - he was equal parts kind, brilliant and fierce.
— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) August 16, 2025
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Civil rights icon Julian Bond dies age 75 - cbsn.ws/1JZPHnP http://t.co/5z3kaWT5CX
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 16, 2025
Civil rights activist Julian Bond is dead at 75 ti.me/1UM1PvR
— TIME.com (@TIME) August 16, 2025
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Farewell to Julian Bond. http://t.co/zreHheBFyy
— Yakyu Night Owl (@YakyuNightOwl) August 16, 2025
And here's an image of Paul Robeson with Julian Bond as a young boy. http://t.co/1ctmHi6oBV
— Robert Greene II (@robgreeneII) August 16, 2025
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We have lost a civil rights giant in Julian Bond. And the best way to honor his memory is to pass the Voting Rights Act.
— Neera Tanden (@neeratanden) August 16, 2025
Julian Bond, Civil Rights icon, has passed away at the age of 75. RIP. http://t.co/nkZMLUGwKX
— Michael Skolnik (@MichaelSkolnik) August 16, 2025
President Barack Obama, surrounded by Cabinet officials and members of Congress, signs a series of bills during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House. Included in the bills signed is the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015
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President Barack Obama’s signature is seen on H.R. 1295 Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015. The president signed into law two hard-fought bills giving him greater authority to negotiate international trade deals and providing aid to workers whose jobs are displaced by such pacts
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The two trade bills @POTUS signed today will put American workers first → go.wh.gov/gMn4fm #LeadOnTrade snpy.tv/1JtpxdM
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 29, 2025
President Obama's trade deal will lock in the strongest labor protections ever → go.wh.gov/gMn4fm #LeadOnTrade http://t.co/6ASH30MPqS
We celebrate his singular life each time we
think of his good works
and the hope and change he brought.
We commemorate his birth in January.
We visit his memorial on the mall
Year-round.
We tell his remarkable story
to the little children of today.
We’d rather leave the marking of the date
he was assassinated in Memphis
to the history books.
But all of it is what we were given
and what he was given.
And, this year, as we recall it was
forty-seven years ago on April 4
that his “four little children”
lost him …
Let us not forget about them
as we rejoice that he belonged to the world
for as long as he did
as we examine the “content of his character”
around the globe, as long as we all still do.
In our minds, we will remember him
and that our voices must keep
challenging the injustices
as we keep yearning for equality for all.
That night,
Robert Kennedy suggested
we dedicate ourselves
to what the Greeks had written
many years before:
“To tame the savageness of man and
make gentle the life of this world.”
A man named Barack Obama,
also in our hearts,
who later
became our President,
surely has dedicated himself to
“taming the savageness of man”
throughout the world
and to a “more perfect union”
here at home.
This year, no matter our religious beliefs
or non-beliefs,
it seems quite fitting somehow,
if only for the history books,
that the date we recall sits between
Good Friday and Passover and Easter
while prayers from other faiths are also
being said,
around the clock,
all over the globe,
in the interests of the human race.
Dr. King, always in our hearts.
Hope and change, always on the horizon,
to “make gentle the life of this world.”
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King was assassinated on April 4, 1968. Today marks the 47th anniversary of his death. http://t.co/LZmQMF6ydw
— deray mckesson (@deray) April 04, 2025
Today marks the 47th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. May he rest in peace 👑 http://t.co/zOsKGtyR2p
— Black Girls (@BlackGirlsWinni) April 04, 2025
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Part of Dr Martin Luther King Jr's last speech, night before 4-4-68: "I've Been To The Mountaintop": youtu.be/Oehry1JC9Rk via @YouTube
— (@JOBoomr) April 04, 2025
Today, we honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His example pushes us to keep fighting for justice. http://t.co/fo7XnyvJtX
Krissah Thompson: 50 Years After His Death, Malcolm X’s Work Is Unfinished
After a life filled with transformation, Malcolm X found himself in February 1965 in the throes of yet another. He had been a fringe figure, known mostly to a small circle of black Muslims and big-city sophisticates, but now he was branching out — seeking allies at home and abroad to help him become a part of the Southern civil rights movement. He had plans to take the cause to the United Nations, charging the U.S. government with failure to protect its black citizens from racist white terrorism. 50 years after he was gunned down by an assassin in Harlem’s Audubon Ballroom, Malcolm X is getting another look. His issues — particularly those that occupied the last year of his life — and his tactics speak to the current conversation.
Police brutality? Malcolm would have been on point amid the protests in Ferguson, Mo., and Staten Island. “Whenever something happens, 20 police cars swarm on one neighborhood,” Malcolm told an interviewer during his crusade against anti-crime bills. “This force . . . creates a spirit of resentment in every Negro. They think they are living in a police state and they become hostile toward the policeman.” Voting rights? Once again in the spotlight, as activists challenge photo ID laws that they say hinder minority voters, and definitely a preoccupation for Malcolm. “When white people are evenly divided, and black people have a bloc of votes of their own, it is left up to them to determine who’s going to sit in the White House and who’s going to be in the doghouse,” he said in 1964.
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Ebony: Malcolm Taught Me: Reflections on X
As people across the world commemorate the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Malcolm X, EBONY asked some of our favorite thought leaders to reflect on how “our Black shining prince” impacted their worldview, cultural identity and work: “He taught me what it meant to publicly be a work in progress, to publicly admit when you were wrong, all in a lifelong effort to be the best person he could be for his people, his family, and himself. I take him with me everywhere I go.“-Rembert Browne, writer. “I remember the first time I heard Brother Malcolm’s speech when he asked, “Who taught you to hate yourself?” I was 15. For me, there was a healing in his truth-telling. His words gave me permission to always call it as I see it. And without apology. “-Yaba Blay, scholar/author
“As a Black man, Malcolm X was one of my first glimpses into what it meant to be proud of your Blackness on your terms; as a storyteller, his book taught me the value in honesty and owning your truth, no matter how messy it might look in the rear view mirror.”-Michael Arceneaux, writer. “The more I learned the truth about Malcolm X, the more I began to love myself. His unwavering courage is how I attempt to show up in the world and in my work.” -Wade Davis, former NFL player/Executive Director, You Can Play Project. “Malcolm wasn’t perfect, but he strived to be, and do, better—to be his best possible self for his people. That is the true worth of a freedom fighter.” -Jason Parham, writer/editor. “Malcolm X’s life taught me that being angry about injustice is an opportunity to use my voice to speak out and use my gifts to spark change.”-Ebonie Johnson Cooper, philanthropist
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“Malcolm died advocating for teenaged, single Black mothers. He died for not remaining silent about the abuse of Black girls.” -dream hampton, writer/activist/educator
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Malcolm X was assassinated 50 years ago today. Read @Krissah30 on his (still-changing) legacy wapo.st/1vksW8G http://t.co/uX8z173udt
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
This is the telegram MLK sent Malcolm X's wife after her husband's assassination vox.com/2015/2/21/8078… http://t.co/9iZ4aJOWEq
— deray mckesson (@deray) February 21, 2025
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Modern consciousness casts Malcolm as MLK foil, as a series of catchphrases. He was much more wapo.st/1vksW8G http://t.co/FjrVPIKcWM
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
Here's the NYT article from paper the morning after "bearded extremist" Malcolm X was assassinated partners.nytimes.com/library/nation…
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
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@WesleyLowery my favorite was “two other negroes.”
— Bomani Jones (@bomani_jones) February 21, 2025
@bomani_jones I'm torn between being impressed about how many inches they wrote with my disdain for their "open and shut case" attitude
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
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"Malcolm, a slim, reddish-haired six-footer with a gift for bitter eloquence against what he considered white exploitation of Negroes"
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
So basically, the day after Malcolm is killed the NYT writes: "he was an angry black man who could talk good"
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
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Here's @washingtonpost front page from day after Malcolm X killed. Carried @AP story (ht @masumaahuja) http://t.co/s0wBBXURnj
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
WaPo's staff-written obit for "articulate, able and dynamic orator..." Malcolm X ran on A3 http://t.co/i6WBt9xL5k
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
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Striking here is that obit keeps referring to the Nation of Islam as a "black Muslim cult."
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) February 21, 2025
@WesleyLowery not to mention the degrading trope of referring to an African American man as 'articulate'
— Mateo Sewillo (@mateosewillo) February 21, 2025
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On the anniversary of his death, EBONY asks "What has Malcolm X taught YOU?" #MalcolmTaughtMe bit.ly/1DAL4hu http://t.co/AciR0KwLEE
— EBONY (@EBONYMag) February 21, 2025
Having my son march beside me as we affirm that #BlackLivesMatter means the world to me! #Malcolm50 http://t.co/oug52OBfaU
— Doug Moore (@DMooreUDW) February 21, 2025
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I wouldn't have been anywhere near as informed about institutional and structural racism as a 15 year old without him. #MalcolmTaughtMe
— melanincholy (@riotersbloc) February 21, 2025
"I'm a human being, first and foremost, and as such I'm for whatever benefits humanity as a whole." #MalcolmTaughtMe http://t.co/gJYxRLzIxE
— Christopher Peach (@MinouNoireLover) February 21, 2025
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NEVER bite your tongue, even in the company of those who oppose you #MalcolmTaughtMe
— Damani McNeil (@dmalcolm_) February 21, 2025
This picture is among my most valued possessions. #MalcolmTaughtMe @MuhammadAli and others self respect, principle. http://t.co/HBODQ44guo
— Len Elmore (@LenElmore) February 21, 2025
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RIP brother Malcolm. Your legacy lives on. Love this message. #Malcolm50 #MalcolmTaughtMe http://t.co/hnolHyiYUH
— Harry Shotton (@HarryShotton) February 21, 2025
"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who does it or says it." #MalcolmTaughtMe
— rula ☪ رولا (@jnoubiye_) February 21, 2025
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@EBONYMag #MalcolmTaughtMe my TRUE history, and to love myself, and to love my people.
— M. Washington (@meagfw) February 20, 2025
#MalcolmTaughtMe that being proud of who I am and committed to justice is a daily choice we all can make.