Martin Luther King and supporters marching for the Poor People’s Campaign in 1968. The Po

Martin Luther King and supporters marching for the Poor People’s Campaign in 1968. The Poor People’s Campaign plan was to organize a mass march on April 22, 1968, culminating in a permanent tent encampment in Washington, D.C. titled “Resurrection City” until their demands were met. The demands included a number of radical and far-reaching reforms:- $30 billion annual appropriation to fight poverty [$213 billion today];- Congressional passage of full employment;- Guaranteed annual wage;- Construction of 500,000 low-cost housing units to eliminate slums;- Petition the government to pass an Economic Bill of Rights.The shanty-town (Resurrection City) was meant to evoke the conditions of the poor under U.S. capitalism and racism. The next phase of the campaign was aimed at mass disruption of everyday business of government institutions. Protesters would engage in arrest-provoking nonviolent civil disobedience. The second phase would lead to a national boycott of industries and major city shopping areas, with the stated goal of putting pressure on business leaders to force Congress to accept the five point demands of the Poor People’s Campaign.King expected violent confrontations with the federal government and its troops in Washington, D.C. Historically, this would not be the first time an encampment would take place in the nation’s capital. In 1932, veterans marched into D.C. demanding payment of bonuses promised for their service in the military during World War I, only to be violently attacked by federal troops.MLK was assassinated on April 4th 1968, most likely so as to undermine the campaign by removing its principle organiser and champion.Source: The Poor People’s Campaign at 50 -- source link

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