Dr. King: 40 Years Later
By Benedict Fernandez

Join us for a gallery reception on Thursday, June 5th from 6 - 8 PM.
Entertainment, refreshments, and discussion in the WBGO performance studio.

This past April marked the 40th anniversary of the assassination of one of our greatest civil rights leaders and humanitarians.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was gunned down on just after 6 PM on April 4, 1968 while he stood on the balcony of his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, TN, where he had gone to lead a march of sanitation workers protesting against low wages and poor working conditions.

One of the most pivotal leaders of the American civil rights movement, Dr. King's assassination has left a permanent void in the soul of our nation and across the world.

As part of WBGO’s continuing commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the WBGO Gallery presents  Dr. King: Forty Years Later, a 61-piece exhibit of historic photographs by Benedict Fernandez that captures Dr. King’s life and times in a myriad of settings.  The exhibit is on loan from Newark-based New Community Corporation.

Regarded as one of the most important street photographers of our time, Fernandez has contributed significant photographic diaries of protest movements and socially significant events of the 60s, including the 1967 civil disorders in Newark, which were the focus of an exhibit at the WBGO Gallery last year.

Fernandez' powerful photographs of the final year of Dr. King's life offer a unique and personal opportunity to experience for the first time, or for those who remember, to re-live from street-level, a critical period in American history. Exhibit includes rare photos of Julian Bond, Coretta Scott King, Bill Cosby, James Baldwin and many others.

The exhibit closes with a reception on Thursday, June 5 (6 – 8 PM), and includes a panel discussion, performance and refreshments.  The WBGO studio and photo gallery are located at 54 Park Place in Newark, New Jersey.

Visitors may view the exhibit during the week, Mon – Fri, from 9 AM to 5 PM until Friday, June 6.

Special thanks to Turning Leaf Vineyards, E&J Distilleries, and Four Star Caterers in West Orange, New Jersey. Very special thanks to New Community Corporation.