WDBJ7 Archive: Rev. Martin Luther King’s 1963 visit to Danville

DANVILLE, Va. (WDBJ) - In the spring of 1963, protests against racial segregation were intensifying in Danville, as peaceful demonstrators marched on city hall.

“Oh God, we have been enslaved too long,” a protest leader prayed during a demonstration. “We have been too long denied the opportunities to work according to our capabilities.”

But June 10th brought a violent crackdown. The day that would become known as Bloody Monday, which resulted in serious injuries and arrests.

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. would visit Danville a month later.

In a show of solidarity with the protestors, he spoke at High Street Baptist Church, condemning the actions of police.

”And we have agonized with you as you have faced the brutality and the ruthlessness," King told the audience.

And he tied what was happening in Danville to the larger fight for racial equality in America.

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,” King said. “And as long as this community has problems, as long as a negro is not free in Danville Virginia, the negro is not free anywhere in the United States of America. And I come here to say to you, that I am concerned about the injustice in this community.”

By August more than 600 people had been arrested.

But inspired by King’s visit, protesters would continue their demonstrations, advancing what is now considered a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement here in Virginia.