Martin Luther King Jr. & the Fight for Peace against American Empire
This Gandhi Jayanti we will be re-examining the Indian movement for our times of war and American imperialism through Martin Luther King Jr. Join us to welcome Dr. Anthony Monteiro for the first event of the Martin Luther King Jr. - W.E.B. Du Bois Peace Pilgrimage!
This friendship and peace tour will be exploring the historical connections between the Indian freedom movement and the Black freedom movement in the United States, featuring Dr. Anthony Monteiro, a long-time participant in the Black freedom movement, former Professor of African American Studies at Temple University, and founder of the Saturday Free School for Philosophy and Black Liberation. During his visit to India, Dr. Monteiro will participate in public programmes across six cities: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Santiniketan, Kolkata, Delhi and Panipat.
The tour will begin on October 2 at 10:30 am at IIWC. Dr. Monteiro will deliver the principal address, followed by a musical tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Rabindranath Tagore by acclaimed Hindustani classical vocalist Dr. K. S. Vaishali. A photographic exhibition of 65 photographs documenting historical connections between India and the African American freedom struggle will also be inaugurated.
The influence of Mahatma Gandhi on Martin Luther King Jr. and the American Civil Rights Movement is widely recognized. However, the broader ideological and political exchanges through which the ideas and methods associated with the Indian freedom struggle traveled to and influenced the Black freedom movement in the United States are lesser known.
The peace tour seeks to revisit this history and create a space for renewed friendship and dialogue between India and the African American freedom tradition. Through public lectures, cultural programmes and historical exhibitions, the tour will explore the continuing relevance of this history to our contemporary problems of freedom, peace, justice and civilizational exchange.
For more information, visit: https://www.peacedialogue.in/du-bois-king-tour