National radio/TV programs on Bayard Rustin & Martin Luther King
Martin Luther King scholar Richard Deats — who was also close friends with the King family and a member of the national commission to create the Dr. King Holiday — was the featured guest on a national webinar hosted last week by the Fellowship of Reconciliation. An audio file of the program will soon be available on FOR's website for on-demand listening.
In the meanwhile, devotees of Dr. King will find another interview interesting: during PBS's "Religion and Ethics Newsweekly" program last month, Cheryl Sanders, an ordained minister and professor at the Howard University School of Theology, spoke about Dr. King's legacy. Like Deats, Ms. Sanders stressed Reverend King's strong anti-militarism stance — an important and oft-overlooked perspective, especially in this historical moment when the U.S. is actively engaging at least two wars (some argue that Yemen is a third conflict where U.S. military forces are in a state of war). The video segment is about 12 minutes long.
Meanwhile, National Public Radio is broadcasting this month a Bayard Rustin program. My friend Walter Naegle, who was Rustin's life partner when he died in 1987, sent the following note:
It is called "Who Is This Man?" and is part of the second season of "State of the Reunion." The program includes interviews with friends and colleagues of Bayard, as well as with historian John D'Emilio, author of Lost Prophet: The Life of Bayard Rustin. There are also clips of Bayard speaking and singing. It is an interesting mix of fact and opinion and gives a very good overview of Bayard's influence and the sweep of his career.
In the New York City area it will be airing on February 10th at 8 pm on WNYC (93.9). Public radio stations in other parts of the country may be airing it at other times, so check your local station's schedule.
You can also visit the website for the program to listen to it at any time. On the website it is divided into three segments.
The website will also be posting additional content —- extended interviews, photographs, etc.
I warmly encourage FOR members and friends to check out this wonderful new resource on one of the most inspiring nonviolence leaders of the past century.
