Commemoration of the Assassination of Martin Luther King

Commemoration of the Assassination of Martin Luther King by Jane Rosenstein

On April 4, 2018  a play entitled “Libres en Fin (Free at Last) was shown at the Theatre d’Atelier in Paris, France , director  Didier Long, to commemorate the 50 years since the assassination of the famous civil rights leader and winner of a Nobel Prize,  Martin Luther King. His famous speech “ I have a dream” is well known worldwide. His speeches against racism are valid today here in France.

April 4, 1968 – April 4, 2018: 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King

On this occasion, The Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute (USA) organized an important 6-day commemoration.

“Libres en Fin” was the only event publicly organized in France to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Martin Luther Kin;

The play written by Pierre Tré-Hardy was directed by Sally Micaleff. We arrived to find the theater packed.  First we read some commentaries from the screen that were written for this special occasion. Sally Micaleff told us that the play would start at 19.05 which was the same hour CST that Martin Luther King was pronounced dead.

Lucien Jean-Baptist read excerpts from texts written by Martin Luther King and another actor

Cyril Guei read scripts from George Jackson who was imprisonated .

The actors were superb and the audience listened intently.

It was relevant to our everyday life including racism still existing today in USA and in France to have a play to commemorate Martin Luther King’s assassination and to tell those to young to remember him or those who have not heard about him his dream.

Having lived for several years in Atlanta GA where  as an interpreter and tour guide, I took foreign visitors to see the birth home of Martin Luther King, Ebineser Baptist Church where he preached and the Martin Luther King Center, I was glad when Sally Micaliff invited  Francisca Grunupp,, a tour guide in Paris, and me to attend.

After the play we attended a cocktail reception where we discussed the play with some members of the audience. All thought it was well produced and the actors played their roles with great enthusiasm.

As Martin Luther King would say “Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy”, and when this time will happen, it will not be a victory for either the White or the Black, but a victory for Human as a Human.

Jane Rosenstein

Jane Rosenstein is a U.S. citizen living in Paris, France. She is a professional translator/interpreter. She is the owner of The International Connection which does international marketing consultation including sales of wine, interpretation, and translation. She enjoys the cultural life that living in Paris offers and has talents in organizing events. She speaks English, French, and Spanish.

She has a B.S. degree in mathematics from University of Pittsburgh and an M.B.A. degree from Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA.