Whosoever: Metropolitan Interdenominational Church; “Citizens of the World”; Metro—A Service of the Death and Resurrection; In Memoriam, James Earl Ray, May 28, 1998. Nashville, Tennessee. (4-page James Earl Ray funeral program)
KING ASSASSINATION (CONSPIRACY WORKS)
Blumenthal, Sid, and Harvey Yazijian, eds. Government by Gunplay: Assassination Conspiracy Theories from Dallas to Today. New York: New American Library, 1976.
Committee to Investigate Assassinations. American Political Assassinations: A Bibliography of Works Published 1963–1970, Relating to the Assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Robert F. Kennedy. Washington, DC: Special Collections Division, Georgetown University Library, 1973. Several versions of this were published. This was Bud Fensterwald/Jim Lasar’s effort, which later became the Assassination Archives and Research Center.
Conspiracy?: Who Killed Martin Luther King, Jr. History Channel, original aired in 2003, 45 minutes. Now part of a 3-DVD set: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY3mszZlebo
DiEugenio, James, and Lisa Pease, eds. The Assassinations: Probe Magazine on JFK, MLK, RFK, and Malcolm X. Los Angeles: Feral House, 2003.
Dyson, Michael Eric. April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Death and How It Changed America. New York: Basic Civitas Books, 2008.
Emison, John Avery. The Martin Luther King Congressional Cover-Up: The Railroading of James Earl Ray, LA. Gretna: Pelican Publishing, 2014.
Gabriel, Michael. James Earl Ray: The Last Days of Inmate #65477. Los Angeles: Cat Yoga Publishing, 2004.
“The King Murder Mystery: Will a New Investigation Establish the Truth?” Skeptic: The Magazine of Opposing View, 18 (March/April 1977).
King v. Jowers (trial transcript): http://www.thekingcenter.org/sites /default/files/KING%20FAMILY%20TRIAL%20TRANSCRIPT .pdf
Lane, Mark, and Dick Gregory. Code Name “Zorro”: The Murder of Martin Luther King, Jr. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1977. Reprinted in 1993 as Murder in Memphis.
McMichael, Pate. Klandestine: How a Klan Lawyer and a Checkbook Journalist Helped James Earl Ray. Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2015.
Marks, Stanley. Coup D’Etat: November 22, 1963; The Conspiracies That Murdered President Kennedy, the Rev. Martin Luther King, and Senator Robert F. Kennedy with Comments of the Trials of Clay B. Shaw, Sirhan B. Sirhan, and James Earl Ray. Los Angeles: Bureau of International Affairs, 1970.
Melanson, Philip H. The Murkin Conspiracy: An Investigation into the Assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Praeger, 1989.
———. Who Killed Martin Luther King? (The Real Story Series). Berkeley: Odonian Press, 1993.
Melanson, Philip H., and Noah Griffin. The Martin Luther King Assassination: New Revelations on the Conspiracy and Cover-Up, 1968–1991. New York: Shapolsky Publishers, 1994.
Newton, Michael. A Case for Conspiracy. Los Angeles: Holloway House Publishing, 1980. Reprinted in 1987 as The King Conspiracy.
Pepper, William F. An Act of State: The Execution of Martin Luther King. New York: Verso, 2008.
———. Orders to Kill: The Truth behind the Murder of Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Warner Books, 1998. Revised, updated, and expanded as The Plot to Kill the King: The Truth behind the Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2016.
Potash, John. The FBI War on Tupac Shakur and Black Leaders: U.S. Intelligence’s Murderous Targeting of Tupac, MLK, Malcolm, Panthers, Hendrix, Marley, Rappers & Linked Ethnic Leftists. s.l.: Progressive Left Press, 2008.
Ray, James Earl. Tennessee Waltz: The Making of a Political Prisoner. Saint Andrews: Saint Andrews Press, 1987.
———. Who Killed Martin Luther King?: The True Story by the Alleged Assassin. Washington, DC: National Press Books, 1992.
Ray, Jerry, and Tamara Carter. A Memoir of Injustice: By the Younger Brother of James Earl Ray, Alleged Assassin of Martin Luther King, Jr. Walterville: TrineDay, 2011.
Ray, John Larry, and Lyndon Barsten. Truth at Last: The Untold Story behind James Earl Ray and the Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Guilford: Lyons Press, 2008.
Ross, Robert Gaylon. The Elite Serial Killers of Lincoln, JFK, RFK & MLK. Spicewood: RIE, 2001.
Savastano, Carmine. Two Princes and a King: A Concise Review of Three Political Assassinations. Neapolis Media Group, 2016.
Scott, Peter Dale, Paul L. Hoch, and Russell Stetler. The Assassinations: Dallas and Beyond: A Guide to Cover-ups and Investigations. New York: Random House, 1976.
The Murder of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. African American History Network. (2 DVDs)
The 13th Juror: The Official Transcript of the Martin Luther King Assassination Conspiracy Trial. s.l.: MLK the Truth, LLC, 2009.
Weisberg, Harold. Frame-Up: The Martin Luther King/James Earl Ray Case Containing Suppressed Evidence. New York: Outerbridge & Dienstfrey, 1971. Several reprints, such as Martin Luther King: The Assassination. New York: Carroll & Graf, 1993. (with a postscript by James Earl Ray)
Wexler, Stuart, and Larry Hancock. The Awful Grace of God: Religion, Terrorism, White Supremacy, and the Unsolved Murder of Martin Luther King, Jr. Berkeley: Counterpoint, 2012.
Who Killed Martin Luther King, Jr.? Clarendon Ent., 2008. 64 minutes, (DVD).
Wilson, Donald G. Evidence Withheld: The True Story of the FBI Cover-Up in the Assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King. Jr. Parker: Outskirts Press, 2013.
KING (FBI MONITORING)
Churchill, Ward, and Jim Vander Wall. The COINTELPRO Papers: Documents from the FBI’s Secret War against Domestic Dissent. Boston: South End Press, 1990.
Friedly, Michael, and David Gallen. Martin Luther King., Jr.: The FBI File. New York: Carroll & Graf, 1993.
Garrow, David J. The FBI and Martin Luther King, Jr., from “Solo” to Memphis. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1981.
Johnson, Loch K. Season of Inquiry: The Senate Intelligence Investigation. Lexington: University of Kentucky Press, 1985.
McKnight, Gerald. The Last Crusade: Martin Luther King Jr., the FBI, and the Poor People’s Campaign. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1998.
O’Reilly, Kenneth. Black Americans: The FBI Files. New York: Carroll & Graf, 1994.
———. Racial Matters: The FBI’s Secret File on Black America, 1960–1972. New York: The Free Press, 1992.
U.S. Senate. Supplemental Detailed Staff Reports on Intelligence Activities and the Rights of Americans. Final Report of the Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities. 94th Congress, 2nd Session, Senate Report 94-755. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, April 23, 1976. Book III (“the Church Committee”). (This volume is specifically related to FBI, COINTELPRO, and Martin Luther King, Jr.: http://www .aarclibrary.org/publib/church/reports/book3/html/ChurchB3 _0001a.htm)
U.S. Senate. Hearings: Federal Bureau of Investigation. Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities. 94th Congress, 1st Session. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1976. Volume VI (“the Church Committee”).
U.S., 109th Congress, 2nd Session, House-Senate Companion Bills, H.R. 2554 and S. 2499, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Records Collection Act of 2006, a bill to create a Records Review Board to collect all government records relating to Martin Luther King. No Congressional action. Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) and Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) announced plans to reintroduce the legislation in the 112th Congress in 2010, but it was not introduced.
Note: Page numbers in italics refer to illustrations.
Abernathy, Ralph
and aftermath of King’s assassination, 144–145, 171, 185, 186
and assassination of King, 138, 140, 143, 144, 145, 146
civil rights work of, 109, 119, 174, 185, 252
and death of, 252
and dinner plans with Kyles, 138, 139, 140
and entourage of King, 119, 120, 121, 138, 173–174, 174
and funeral services for King, 205, 207, 210
and King’
s last night at home with his family, 117
King’s relationship with, 109, 123, 145, 174, 185, 205, 252
and leadership, 109, 174, 202, 252
and “Mountaintop” address of King, 122–123, 128
and sanitation workers’ strike, 109–110, 202
and transport to funeral home, 170–171
trip to Memphis, 108, 109, 118, 119, 121
And the Walls Came Tumbling Down, 252
“Abraham, Martin and John” (Holler), 239–241, 240
Adams, Ronald, 10
Aeromarine Supply Company, 110–112, 111
absence of surveillance cameras at, 171
and false identity used by Ray, 196
and manhunt for King’s killer, 187
rifle purchased at, 110–112, 111, 112–113, 146
And the Walls Came Tumbling Down (Abernathy), 252
Anschutz, Willie, 148
Apollo 8 mission of NASA, 241–244, 242–243
Arrests of civil rights activists, 31, 32, 32, 39, 40–41, 42, 43
Assassination attempt by Curry (1958), 1–14
attempted murder of King, 4–6, 8
and Blumstein’s, 2, 3, 3–4, 258
and book-signing tour, 1–4, 5
Curry arrested, 8, 9, 12–13
and fatalism of King, 13–14, 125–128
and Harlem Hospital, 10–11, 11, 13, 15
injuries suffered by King, 7, 8, 10, 34, 124–125
and King’s career following, 50, 125–126
and “Mountaintop” address of King, 124–125
Assassination of King (1968), 129–151
aftermath of, 144–151, 147, 151, 152–153, 162–165, 168–169, 170, 170–172, 173, 174, 174–178, 175, 177, 178, 181, 182, 185–186, 197–212, 198–199, 200–201, 206–207, 208–209, 211
bullet used in, 112, 143, 144, 152–153, 169, 170, 188, 192
and conspiracy rumors, 224, 235–237, 251
death of King, 169–171
and description of suspect, 137, 159, 160, 161, 165, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218, 222
diagrams of murder scene, 133, 152–153
evidence left by Ray, 141, 145, 147, 150, 151, 159, 168–169, 188, 191–192, 236
fingerprints left by Ray, 135, 191–192, 216, 218, 224, 236
initial reports of, 157–158
injuries suffered by King, 144, 145–146, 148, 164–165
and Kennedy, R., 179–182, 181
location of assassin (see also rooming house rented by Ray)
location of King (see also Lorraine Motel, Memphis, Tennessee)
medical treatment of King, 164–165, 169
motive for, 237–238
news of, 165, 171, 176, 179–182, 189
and police response, 145, 148, 157–161, 163, 164 (see also Tactical Unit 10)
Ray’s decision to kill King, 102, 107, 126
Ray’s denial of responsibility for, 251
Ray’s trial for, 234–235
shot fired by Ray, 140–145, 143, 147, 152–153 (see also rifle used in assassination of King)
sniper’s nest for, 134–136, 135, 142, 143, 188
and tracking King’s movements, 108, 116, 126, 129, 136, 137, 138
and transport of King to hospital, 161, 162, 164
and view of the Lorraine, 131–134, 135, 138, 142, 147, 152–153
and witnesses, 150, 162–164
See also escape of Ray; manhunt for Ray
Assassinations, (see also John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Medgar Evers, Robert F. Kennedy)
Atlanta, Georgia, 103, 172, 188, 191, 234
and birthplace of King, 19
and family homes of King, 23, 26, 117, 257
and protests in, 38
and Ray’s rooming house in, 108, 112, 172
and Ray’s travels in, 103, 110, 116, 171, 172, 188, 191, 194, 234
and King’s funeral and burial, 197–212
and murder of King’s mother, 249
Atlanta Constitution, 116
Bailey, F. Lee, 231, 234
Barrasso, Jerome, 169
Belafonte, Harry, 202
Bevel, James, 120, 163
Birch, Philip, 229–230
Birmingham, Alabama
arrest of King in, 42, 43
bombing of Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, 52–54, 53, 257
Civil Rights Act, 1964, 125
King stranded in, 107
nonviolent demonstrations in, 40, 42, 44
Ray in, 92, 103, 110
violent opposition to civil rights in, 40, 44, 44, 45
Black Lives Matter movement, 246
Black Panther Party, 71, 71
“Black Power,” 71
Black supremacy, King on, 3
Bloody Sunday, 66
Blumstein’s department store, 2–4, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 258
Bombing of King home, 33
Books written by King
and book-signing tour in New York, 1–4, 5 (see also assassination attempt by Curry)
Strength to Love, 173, 173
Stride Toward Freedom, x, 1–4, 3
Where Do We Go from Here? 73, 245
Booth, John Wilkes, 219
Boston University’s School of Theology, 28
“Boy” (term applied to black men), 26
Branch, Ben, 140, 163
Brown v. Board of Education, 37
Burch, Lucius, 120
Bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, 1, 31–34, 32, 33, 35
Butler, Thomas, 230
Caldwell, Earl, 120
Canada, 103
and passport application of Ray, 193–194, 213, 221, 224, 236
Ray’s stopover in, 193–194, 205, 213, 219, 234
Ray’s movements in, 103, 231
Canipe, Mr., 150, 159
Canipe Amusement Company, 150–151, 151, 152, 188, 192
Capitol Homes public housing, 191, 194, 195
Carmichael, Stokely, 71
Car of Ray
abandoned after assassination, 191, 195
and driving cross country, 101
and escape from crime scene, 149, 151, 161, 165, 236
fingerprints wiped from, 191
hoax sighting of, 166–168
and manhunt for King’s killer, 161, 191, 194, 195–196
and plans for assassinating King, 116, 130
purchased with false identity, 92, 194, 195
seized by FBI, 194–195
Chaney, James, 58–59
Chicago, Illinois
and aftermath of King’s assassination, 177, 178
King’s failure in, 69–70
mourning King’s death in, 211–212
Ray as an escaped criminal in, 83, 87, 90
segregation in, 69–70
violence against blacks in, 21
Chicago Defender, 12
Christian Church and civil rights movement, 37
“Civil Disobedience” (Thoreau), 27
Civil Rights Act, 1964, 57, 58, 68, 75, 125
Civil rights movement, 31–72
and Abernathy, 109, 119, 174, 185, 252
and arrests of civil rights activists, 31, 32, 32, 39, 40–41, 42, 43
and assassination attempt by Curry, 34
and assassination of Malcolm X, 63–65
in Chicago, 69–70
dangers associated with, 65 (see also violence associated with civil rights movement)
Johnson’s advocacy for, 54–57, 58, 176, 248
King as symbol of, 14, 34, 35, 36–37, 50–51, 247
King’s leadership of, 1, 34, 36, 65, 109, 174, 247, 253
landmarks of, 256–258
and law enforcement, 163
legal strategies of, 37
long-term plan of, 36
marches of (see also marches)
and modern civil rights issues, 246
and murders of civil rights workers, 58–59, 68
role of religious faith in, 37
and slavery’s
long-term effects, 36
strategies of, 36–37 (see also nonviolent resistance)
sympathy for, 44, 54
and Vietnam War, 73–77
Civil War, US, 25, 58, 122
Clark, Ramsey, 184, 185, 187
Coleman, Vernoll, 6–7
Collins, Addie Mae, 53
Commercial Appeal newspaper (Memphis), 129
Confederate States of America, 19, 122
Connor, Eugene “Bull,” 44
Conspiracy rumors, 224, 235–237, 251
Cotton, Dorothy, 120
Crozer Theological Seminary, 27
Curry, Izola Ware
attempted assassination of King, 4–9, 252–253, 258
in custody, 9, 11, 12–13
death of, 252
Daley, Richard, 69
Davis, Georgia, 120
Davis, R. R., 162–163
DeLoach, Cartha “Deke,” 184–185, 187, 214
Dixon, Harry, 8
Douglas, E. E., 157
Ebenezer Baptist Church
as civil rights landmark, 257
and funeral services for King, 202–206, 204
as headquarters for King, 112
murder of King’s mother at, 249
ordination of King at, 27
Economic justice, 27, 107, 245–246
Education of King, 27, 28
Ellington, Duke, 2
Employment, equal access to, 37
Entourage of King
and assassination attempt by Curry, 8
mourning King’s death, 173–174, 174
Ray’s surveillance of, 136
return to Memphis, 120
See also specific members, including Abernathy, Ralph
Escape of Ray
across state lines, 81–84, 171–172
into Canada, 193
immediately following shooting, 133, 146, 148–151, 149, 157, 162
and media reports of King’s death, 171
and passport application of Ray, 193–194, 213, 221, 224, 236
and police perimeter around Lorraine, 159
rifle abandoned during, 150, 151
See also manhunt for Ray
Maps of, 103, 234
Eskridge, Chauncey, 120
Evers, Medgar, 46
Evil, noncooperation with, 27
Fatalism of King, 13–14, 54
The F.B.I. (television series), 90, 219
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
and car of Ray, 194–195
and conspiracy rumors, 235