'Remembering MLK': National Civil Rights Museum to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr.

The National Civil Rights Museum will commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the 55th anniversary of his death.

The civil rights leader was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis on April 4, 1968.

The Downtown Memphis museum — which is housed on the grounds of the Lorraine, at 450 Mulberry St. — is typically closed on Tuesdays. But on April 4 it will be open for regular hours, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., as audio recordings of the civil rights leader’s speeches will play in the courtyard throughout the day.

Special events planned for April 4 include a mid-day virtual symposium, “Transforming Unjust Economic System," and an afternoon event, “Remembering MLK: The Man. The Movement. The Moment,” which will feature a keynote speaker, performances and fraternal tributes.

The events are free and open to the public and will be livestreamed via the National Civil Rights Museum's website.

Here is more information about Tuesday’s programming.

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MLK55: Transforming Unjust Economic Systems

11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

The National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel joins The King Center to present “MLK55: Transforming Unjust Economic Systems” in honor of King’s life and legacy. The virtual event will feature The King Center CEO Dr. Bernice A. King and National Civil Rights Museum President Russ Wigginton, and is moderated by Joy-Ann Reid, political analyst for MSNBC and host of “The ReidOut.”

When he was killed, King was supporting striking sanitation workers demanding fair wages, better working conditions and union recognition. King’s proposed universal basic income was set as part of the Poor People’s Campaign to eliminate poverty for all Americans.

This year's virtual conversation will bring a fresh perspective in answering the question, “Where do we go from here?” — the title of King’s last book.

Remembering MLK: The Man. The Movement. The Moment.

4:30 p.m.-6:15 p.m.

The National Civil Rights Museum will present a hybrid commemoration in honor of King’s life and legacy on the 55th anniversary of his death. The public is welcome to pay tribute to King in the museum courtyard. This year’s event features a keynote speaker, special performances, fraternal tributes and the changing of the balcony wreath with a moment of silence at 6:01 p.m. CT, when King was shot. A musical prelude will begin at 4 p.m. CT.

The keynote speaker will be Dr. Otis Moss III, third-generation warrior for civil and human rights who has built his ministry on community advancement and racial and social justice activism. As senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago since 2008, Moss routinely preaches and practices a Black theology that unapologetically calls attention to the problems of mass incarceration, environmental justice and economic inequality.

Performers will include The W. Crimm Singers, also known as the Wakanda Chorale, a professional ensemble-in-residence of Tennessee State University’s Big Blue Opera Initiatives. The group embraces the music of the Black experience throughout the diaspora and every genre connected to it with emphasis on the Negro Spiritual, African American operatic and concert repertoire, hymnody and anthems.

There also will be musical performances by Iris Orchestra’s Artist Fellows and Memphis Symphony Orchestra/University of Memphis Fellows, two programs dedicated to emerging musicians from African American and Latinx communities.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: National Civil Rights Museum to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr.