The Impact of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King’s Assassination on Seattle

Aaron and Elmer Dixon were both detained on the day of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King’s assassination in 1968.  They watched the cities burning after Dr. King’s death.  Not long after this event, the Dixon brothers went to the Bay Area where they met leaders of the Black Panther Party.  Listen in on how the death of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King not only rocked the country, but Seattle’s Central District youth.

Photo courtesy of Civil Rights and Labor History Project

Seattle’s 1968 Franklin High School Sit-In

Seattle’s Franklin High School made history on March 29th, 1968 as reportedly over 100 students staged a sit-in. It was the first of its kind. And it helped to spark the civil rights movement in Seattle.

Episode 1 -Former Franklin High School student involved in the 1968 student sit-in, Charles Oliver recounts his experience of what led up to the Franklin High School sit-in.

Episode 2 – Former Franklin High School student involved in the 1968 student sit-in, Trolice Flavors shares his experience of the event.

Episode 3 – King County Councilmember and former participant of Seattle’s 1968 Franklin High school sit-in, Larry Gossett recounts what led up to the event and the impact that it had.

Episode 4 – Former black student union organizer at Seattle’s Garfield high school, Elmer Dixon talks about his support of forming Seattle’s Franklin High school black student union during the 1968 student sit in.

Episode 5 – Former participants in Seattle’s Franklin High School Sit-In, Trolice Flavors, Elmer Dixon and Charles Oliver, talk about what Black Lives Matter means to them

Music by Kevin MacLeod – “Acidjazz”

Photo  EJ Brisker and Kathy Halley speaking with the press after the Franklin High School Sit-In is courtesy of MOHAI, Seattle P-I Collection