Welcome to the World of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

One of the many reasons I enjoy working at the Mississippi Library Commission (MLC) as a Reference Librarian is the constant flurry of information that finds its way across my desk. There's always something new to learn, no matter how much I think I know about a subject. We receive more questions about certain areas than others, so my knowledge about genealogy and Mississippi history, for instance, have burgeoned in comparison to my knowledge about, say, pop icons. (Sorry, Beyoncé!) The 91^st anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birth is today, January 15, and the  official observance of the day is Monday the 20^th, when MLC will be closed. I realized that I have learned a lot less about Dr. King's life and work than I have our homegrown Mississippi civil rights icons, like Medgar Evers, Fannie Lou Hamer, Vernon Dahmer, and Anne Moody. I hustled myself to the shelves!

These are just a few of the many books and resources I found here at MLC to check out and peruse:

• At Canaan's Edge: America in the King Years, 1965-68
  Taylor Branch
• A Call to Conscience: The Landmark Speeches of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
  Clayborne Carson
• I May Not Get There With You: the True Martin Luther King, Jr.
  Michael Eric Dyson
• The Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Speech that Inspired a Nation
  Drew Hanson
• To the Promised Land: Martin Luther King and the Fight for Economic Justice
  Michael K. Honey
• The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr.
  Martin Luther King, Jr.
• The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr.
  Martin Luther King, Jr.
  
• Why We Can't Wait
  Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community
  Martin Luther King, Jr.
• Hellhound on his Trail: the Stalking of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the International Hunt for his Assassin
  Hampton Sides

Sometimes I want more than just a book, funny as that may seem for a bookworm, so I decided to browse the Library of Congress's website to see what they have. Y'all. I stumbled across this half-hour documentary called A Time for Freedom. It's about the 1957 Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom and features the first King speech to a national audience, the Give us the Ballot speech. Dr. King appears at the 24:07 mark.


They have even more interesting entries about this inspiring leader, so be sure to take a look at their catalog here. You're going to want to check out these excellent Internet resources as well.

• The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change
• Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park
• Martin Luther King and the Nobel Prize (includes biographical facts and his Nobel lecture) 

I hope you've enjoyed this quick dip into the world of resources libraries offer about Dr. King. There are events planned across the state for Monday, so check with your local library or chamber to find out what's on tap. There's even free admission at the Two Museums January 18-20! Happy birthday, Dr. King!