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Martin Luther King: Speech Contributors

Global figures celebrate Dr King's legacy by reading sections of the speech which resonate with their own experiences and aspirations.

  • American author and poet, Northern coordinator for Dr King鈥檚 Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

  • American musician, singer and songwriter. Campaigner for Martin Luther King鈥檚 birthday to become a national holiday in the US.

  • Awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize, the Martin Luther King Award and jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his contribution to the peace process in Northern Ireland.

  • President of Liberia and the first female Head of State in Africa, Nobel Peace Laureate and campaigner for women鈥檚 rights.

  • Nelson Mandela's first granddaughter speaking for him.

  • Israeli author and peace campaigner.

  • Soon to become Baroness Lawrence, the mother of murdered British teenager Stephen Lawrence.

  • Musician and activist who performed at the 1963 March on Washington.

  • Chilean-American novelist, playwright, journalist and human rights activist.

  • Indian peace campaigner and environmentalist.

  • Former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the first female President of Ireland.

  • Venezuelan economist, educator, and musician.

  • Human rights lawyer, Iran鈥檚 first female judge, Nobel Peace Laureate.

  • Palestinian lawyer, novelist and political activist.

  • Nobel Peace Laureate and Bangladeshi microcredit economist.

  • Chinese human rights and democracy campaigner, imprisoned for over 18 years.

  • Anti-apartheid campaigner, appointed by Nelson Mandela to serve as a judge on the Constitutional Court of South Africa.

  • Sixteen-year-old student and education activist from Swat in Pakistan, shot by the Taliban for going to school.

  • The last surviving member of the big six leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement, who spoke at the March on Washington on 28th August 1963.