21:23

The Guardian’s Jamiles Lartey has spent the day at the rally and march in Memphis to commemorate King’s death.

The I AM march brought together a diverse coalition of marchers through Memphis, where King travelled in 1968 to assist striking members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). He was assassinated at the city’s Lorraine Motel on his second visit to the strikers.

Near the head of the march, King’s son, Martin III locked arms with Reverend Al Sharpton and Lee Saunders, AFSCME president. Nearby, some sang standby protest songs from the civil rights era, including We Shall Overcome.

A few yards back, younger protesters who affiliated themselves with Black Lives Matter chanted “no justice, no peace.” They said they were marching to protest the deaths of young black men at the hands of law enforcement.

“I’m here for Stephon Clark,” said marcher Tiffany Evans, referring to the unarmed black man shot by Sacramento police last month. Evans travelled from Mississippi for the commemoration.





Jamiles Lartey (@JamilesLartey) They're getting ready to step off here in Memphis to the tune of the Isley Brothers "Fight the Power". pic.twitter.com/Ax8M1Awywr

Most of the protesters were either union members or friends and family of union members, including Theone Hillard who came from New Orleans with her husband and son in support of the UNITE HERE, which primarily represents hospitality workers. “I’m here for the people who get paid the least amount of money, and get the least appreciation,” she said.

Hillard, a registered nurse, said the march made her want to get more engaged with organized labor moving forward. “I think all working people should have a union, because companies don’t always treat you like they should,” she said.

David Woods, a member of the BCTGM (Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers’ International Union) said one of the reasons he marched is because what union workers were facing 50 years ago compared to now hasn’t changed very much. “What we’re facing today is still corporate greed and the woking man is only going to have a voice if we stand up and rise together,” he said.

As the march pulled toward its end point, rounding the corner past a Checkers burger restaurant, the faint strains of the Trinity inspirational choir suddenly became audible. Marchers poured into an open field across from a Memphis High School to hear addresses from King III, Sharpton and other activists and clergy members.



“50 years later, we’re not here to mourn, we’re here to recommit,” Sharpton said. “We’re here to let this nation know that Dr King didn’t die in vain... You may have taken the dreamer but you will not take the dream. We will march on!”