Another Black Friday, a front page story on 6 April 1968 about King’s assassination told how the civil rights leader had walked many times into the cauldron of racial violence in the stoical knowledge that his days might soon be numbered.

The same front page also carried news that President Lyndon B Johnson had proclaimed a day of mourning in the US.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The Guardian, 6 April 1968.

In the inside pages, an editorial said the world was once again shocked by a senseless act of violence in America. An obituary noted that anyone who heard King speak would agree that it was an unforgettable experience.

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In the foreign news section a story from Harlem found black residents in a state of disbelief about having lost their “king”.

The Guardian, 6 April 1968.

From the capital, Richard Scott described how King’s philosophy of non-violence had made politicians in Washington take note. That philosophy was challenged by some in the civil rights movement who believed King’s assassination justified a more militant approach.



While attention turned to finding King’s successor, in the state of Georgia, where King was born, mourners waited in Atlanta as the plane carrying his coffin landed.

The Guardian, 6 April 1968.

A round up of world reaction included a call from the House of Commons for King’s “brutal and senseless murder” to inspire efforts to eliminate discrimination in the UK. In India, prime minister Gandhi said King’s assassination was a “setback to mankind’s search for light.”