Previous
File
Current
File
Martin
Luther King III inaugurates exhibition
on Dr King, Gandhiji
|
|
|
Dr Martin Luther King-III and Ms Arndrea Waters
King meeting President Pratibha Devisingh Patil
in New Delhi on February 16
|
New
Delhi: US civil rights leader Martin Luther King III
inaugurated a special exhibition "Journey towards Freedom"
on Mahatma Gandhi and Dr Martin Luther King here today.
King said peace, love and non-violence are necessary in
everyday life, and hoped that people would be able to
know about the philosophy and thoughts of both Mahatma
Gandhi and Martin Luther King Junior. On Sunday, King
and an American delegation visited Rajghat, Gandhiji's
memorial in the national Capital. Naming Mahatma Gandhi
as the greatest human being of all times, King termed
this visit to India as a rare honour. "As the son of Martin
Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, I have had this
opportunity to pay tribute to the greatest human being
that ever worked on our planet. Fifty years ago, my father
and mother came to this country and spent about 30 days,"
said King. He candidly admitted that he was greatly inspired
by the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi.
Prominent
American civil rights activists and lawmakers including
John Lewis, Congressman Spencer Bachus, Andrew Young and
legendary jazz musician and Grammy winner Herbie Hancock
are part of the delegation. The delegation is on a 12-day
trip to India to retrace the steps of Martin Luther King
Jr., who came to India to study Mahatma Gandhi. The delegation
will travel around major locations associated with Mahatma
Gandhi. The members of this delegation linked the election
of Barack Obama as the US President to the teachings of
Mahatma Gandhi and leadership of Martin Luther King Jr.
"The teachings of Gandhi, the leadership of Martin Luther
King Jr, have liberated and freed hundreds and thousands
of citizens in the USA," said John Lewis, civil rights
icon of the United States. Further, he said that peace
in the world could only be attained when people follow
the path shown by Mahatma Gandhi. The present delegation
will also visit Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad from where
Mahatma Gandhi had started the 322 kilometers long march
known as the 'Dandi Yatra' as a mark of protest against
tax levied on salt by the British in 1930. Martin Luther
King Jr. had visited India between February 10 and March
10 in 1959, and the month-long tour to primary places
associated with Mahatma Gandhi had left a positive impact
on his crusade in the US.
- Feb 16, 2009
