U.S. Elections Campaign Archive Display: Martin Luther King Jr.

Alongside our current Martin Luther King Jr. book display, we are now displaying a selection of items from the Philip and Rosamund Davies U.S. Election Campaigns Archive which relate in a variety of ways to King’s life, work and legacy.

The display. Badges, an open magazine, books and pamphlets.

Central to the display is a magazine commemorating the campaign of Robert F. Kennedy, who was himself assassinated in 1968, two months after King, while running for the Democratic presidential nomination. In this magazine, visitors to the library can read Kennedy’s famous speech given in the immediate aftermath of the news of King’s assassination.

Robert “Bobby” Kennedy features again in a selection of campaign badges – his reads “Sock it to ’em Bobby”. It can be seen alongside one for Lyndon B. Johnson’s 1964 campaign; King himself supported Johnson’s campaign, and Johnson would go on to sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Civil Rights Act of 1968. The selection is completed by three badges from Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign which make the longevity of King’s legacy clear by creating a direct connection between King and Obama.

Finally, looking at the wider context of the civil rights movement, we have on display a pamphlet produced by Henry Winston, another African American political leader and activist, entitled Negro-White Unity.

About the US Elections Campaign Archive

The Philip and Rosamund Davies U.S. Elections Campaigns Archive is an actively growing collection of campaign ephemera from American elections at all levels (National, State, Local). The Archive covers the 19th Century up to and including our current period, but the majority dates from the late 20th Century onwards. Materials include Includes buttons, posters, leaflets, stickers, t-shirts & hats, to more unique items: dolls, jewellery, shoes, bars of soap, playing cards, artwork & commemorative plates!

Items have been catalogued up to the 2020 intake. You can view it via the Bodleian Libraries Archives and Manuscripts Catalogue.

Further details on the items on display

Negro-White Unity by Henry Winston, (New Outlook Publishers, 1967) (MS. 21407/204)

Henry Winston was an African American political leader and Marxist activist. Winston was actively involved in campaigning for African American Civil Rights in the 1940s and 50s, before the mainstream movement began. Winston was imprisoned from 1956-61 because of his involvement with the Communist Party. His imprisonment was seen as controversial due to his declining health and Winston eventually went blind due to inadequate treatment whilst in prison. This pamphlet was produced after Winston had left prison and had become the Communist Party USA Chairman. A digitised version of this leaflet is available via the American Left Ephemera Collection, University of Pittsburgh Digital Collections (https://digital.library.pitt.edu/islandora/object/pitt:31735061655746)

Robert F. Kennedy: The last campaign (Award Books, 1968) (MSS. Amer. s. 33 / 1 / 1)

Robert “Bobby” Kennedy was the attorney general of his brother John F. Kennedy’s administration in 1961-64. During that time, both Kennedys witnessed the growing civil rights movement, and the growth of King as a civil rights leader. In 1968, Bobby was running for the Democrat candidate, when the news of King’s assassination came through. The pages here show quotations from Bobby Kennedy’s speech in immediate response to the news, and shows his attendance at King’s funeral. This magazine was created to commemorate Bobby Kennedy’s final campaign, as he would also be assassinated two months after King.  

Badges

Lyndon B. Johnson, Democrat Candidate, 1964 (MSS. Amer. s. 33 / 50)

Lyndon B. Johnson became the president after the Kennedy assassination. Partially in memory of John F. Kennedy, Johnson worked hard to get the 1964 Civil Rights Act through Congress. King was present when Johnson signed the Act into law.

Robert (Bobby) Kennedy, Democrat Candidate, 1968 (MSS. Amer. s. 33 / 50)

Barack Obama, Democrat Candidate, 2008 (MSS. Amer. s. 33 / 50)

The badges chosen here (during the main campaign and in the run up to the 2009 inauguration) create a direct connection with Obama and Martin Luther King. Notably, one badge alters the famous picture of King with Malcolm X, taken in 1964.

Books by or including Dr King from the Vere Harmsworth collections

Stride toward freedom: The Montgomery story (Harpers & Brothers, 1958)

King’s first memoir discussed the events of the Montgomery bus boycott, which famously involved fellow activist Rosa Parks. King discusses the racial conditions before, during and after the boycott, the role of local activists and the importance of a non-violent approach. Later editions are also available in the Vere Harmsworth Library.

The Negro Protest: James Baldwin, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King talk with Kenneth B. Clark (Beacon Press, 1963)

Kenneth Clark was a psychologist. His famous work with his wife Marnie Clark involving children and dolls of different races was influential in the Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling. This book is the text from Clark’s televised interviews with the three leading African American leaders of their time, and showcases the changing movement and different approaches, especially between King and Malcolm X. An ebook version is available via SOLO.

Strength to Love (Hodder & Stoughton, 1964)

King’s second book, originally published in 1963, contains King’s most well known and loved homilies. It enhanced King’s identity and his religious views, especially among the white audience. The version on display is the first UK edition, published in 1964. An ebook version of a later edition is available via SOLO.

Why we can’t wait (Harper & Rowe, 1964)

King’s third book, it tells the story of African American activism in the spring and summer of 1963. It also argues against the gradualist approach to Civil Rights.

Where do we go from here: chaos or community? (Bantam Books, 1968)

King’s last published work, the book was an analysis of the current state of the civil rights movement in 1968, and the state of American race relations. Post the Civil Rights Act, King was focused on improving the wages and living conditions of African Americans. This specific edition was published after King’s assassination, and includes a foreword by King’s widow, Coretta Scott King. An ebook version of a later edition is available via SOLO.

You can find out more about King’s works at The Martin Luther King Research & Education Institute at Stanford University: https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/

Book Display: Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a US federal holiday honouring King and the impact he had in advancing civil rights in the United States, falls this year on Monday 20th January. To mark this occasion, the Vere Harmsworth Library has created a book display highlighting some of the resources in our collection which relate to King and his legacy.

12 books displayed on a bookcase with two A4 posters. One poster has the title "Martin Luther King Jr." and a photo of King addressing a crowd, and the other has the title "Looking for more?" and five QR codes with accompanying text. Book titles include "Dream and legacy", "Martin Luther King, Jr., encyclopedia", and "Strength to love".

The display includes overviews of the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr., such as The Martin Luther King, Jr. encyclopedia and King : the life of Martin Luther King, as well as works by him, such as Strength to love, a collection of his sermons, and his autobiography. There are also titles focusing on more specific and lesser known aspects of his life and legacy, such as Brothers in the beloved community : the friendship of Thich Nhat Hanh and Martin Luther King Jr and The radical King.

We have also signposted a number of online resources for further research, such as The King Institute website and The Civil Rights History Project.

The book display can be found on the ground floor on the left hand side, near the armchairs and low table. Many of these books can be loaned out, and some are also available as ebooks via SOLO.

To find out more about using the Vere Harmsworth Library collections please contact the Vere Harmsworth Library (vhl@bodleian.ox.ac.uk).