Martin Luther King Jr. came to Memphis in 1968 to support the Memphis sanitation workers’ strike. The strike began after two Black sanitation workers — Echol Cole and Robert Walker — were killed in a garbage truck accident during dangerous working conditions. Black sanitation workers were underpaid, treated unfairly, and often denied basic safety and dignity. Workers marched carrying signs that said: “I AM A MAN” That phrase became one of the most powerful symbols of the Civil Rights Movement. King saw the strike as bigger than garbage collection. To him, it was about: * Human dignity * Workers’ rights * Economic justice * Equal treatment for Black Americans While in Memphis, he gave his famous “Mountaintop” speech at Mason Temple on April 3, 1968, where he said: “I’ve been to the mountaintop…” The next day, April 4, 1968, he was assassinated at Lorraine Motel, now home to ncrmuseum That moment permanently tied Memphis to one of the most important chapters in American histor...