Today in History: March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom
Today in History–August 28–the Library of Congress features the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, held on this day in 1963. Around a quarter million people participated in this non-violent demonstration for civil rights seeking, among other things, equal access to public accommodations, decent housing, adequate and integrated education, the right to vote, and job training. The six primary organizers and organizations for the March were: James Farmer, National Director of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), Reverend Martin Luther King, President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), John Lewis, Chairman of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), A. Philip Randolph, President of the Negro American Labor Organization, Roy Wilkins, Executive Secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and Whitney Young, Executive Director of the Urban League. Learn more about this momentous day by visiting the Today in History section and clicking the links below to access primary sources and deepen your understanding of putting civics into action.
A Day Like No Other: Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington online exhibition
More online exhibition items
- The Preamble for the March on Washington document
- Organizers Plan March Strategy photo
- Marching for Freedom color photo
- At the March: We Demand photo
- Support of Hollywood Entertainers at the March photo
- John Lewis at the March photo and speech text
- Roy Wilkins with a few of the ca. 250,000 participants on the Mall heading for the Lincoln Memorial in the March on Washington photo
- Roy Wilkins at the March on Washington video
- March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom—Lincoln Memorial Program
- Civil Rights Leaders Meet President Kennedy After the March photo
- NAACP lawyer Constance Baker Motley discusses her surprise at crowds at the March on Washington oral history video
Final Plans for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom booklet
March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom Organizing Manual No. 1
1963 historical newspaper coverage of the March on Washington
March on Washington oral history mentions Civil Rights History Project
The March on Washington Civil Rights History Project article
March on Washington primary source set Smithsonian
Library blog posts
- Beautiful Day For A March Inside Adams
- Exploring the Ideas and Logistics Behind the March on Washington Using a Planning Document Teaching with the Library
- Inside the March on Washington: Bayard Rustin’s “Army” Timeless
- Inside the March on Washington: Moving On Timeless
- Inside the March on Washington: Speaking Truth to Power Timeless
- Inside the March on Washington: “Our Support Really Ran Deep” Timeless
- Inside the March on Washington: A Time for Change Timeless
- Last Word: Rep. John Lewis and the March on Washington Timeless
- Looking Behind the March on Washington: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Civil Rights Movement, and Labor in Primary Sources Teaching with the Library
- March on Washington, 1963: Many New Photographs Digitized Picture This
- The March on Washington in Color Timeless
- Protests That Changed America: The March on Washington Timeless
- Rich Online Resources Document the 1963 March on Washington The Signal
- “We’ll walk hand in hand someday” – Music and the March on Washington In the Muse
Recorded webcasts
- This Is the Day: The March on Washington
- With Their Own Eyes: Photographers Witness the March on Washington
- A Day Like No Other: Commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington
Related resources
- Learning from the Source: We Shall Overcome lesson plan
- The 1957 March on Washington: A Pilgrimage for Rights and the Ballot Teaching with the Library of Congress August 27, 2019
- Primary Source Spotlight: John Lewis
- Primary Source Spotlight: A. Philip Randolph
- Primary Source Spotlight: Bayard Rustin
- Primary Source Spotlight: Little Rock Nine
- Primary Source Spotlight: NAACP
- Today in History: Mahalia Jackson
- Today in History: Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Today in History: Rosa Parks