Martin Luther King Jr. Original Telegram to a Public Aid Union "We Recognize That You Too Share the Vision of a Society in Which All Men are Treated with Justice and Dignity. We Offer Our Support to You in Your Struggle..."

Martin Luther King Jr

Ephemera

[Martin Luther King Jr.] [Chicago] King Jr., Martin Luther. Western Union telegram sent May 19, 1966, supporting the Independent Union of Public Aid Employees during the Chicago Freedom Movement. The message documents King’s public alignment with labor activism and welfare reform campaigns during his Northern civil rights organizing in Chicago, where he sought to address structural inequality in housing, employment, and public assistance systems.

Original telegram from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to the Independent Union of Public Aid Employees. May 19, 1966. Western Union telegram. Chicago, Illinois. Measures 8" x 5.5" unframed, 12.5" x 9.5" framed. An extraordinary piece of civil rights ephemera, this original 1966 Western Union telegram was sent by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and “the staff” to the Independent Union of Public Aid Employees (IUPAE) during the height of the Chicago Freedom Movement. The telegram reflects King’s growing commitment to labor justice, economic equality, and Northern civil rights struggles, supporting public labor unions engaged in collective social welfare reform.

The telegram reads as follows:

"CD199.=PD CHICAGO ILL 29 154P CDT.
=INDEPENDENT UNION OF PUBLIC AID EMPLOYEES.=
ATTN ALLEN KAPLAN PRES 26 WEST HARRISON CHGO.=

ALL OF US HAVE BEEN PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE DEVELOPMENT .=OF THE STRUGGLE IN WHICH YOU ARE NOW ENGAGED. WE RECOGNIZE .=THAT YOU TOO SHARE THE VISION OF A SOCIETY IN WHICH ALL MEN .=ARE TREATED WITH JUSTICE AND DIGNITY. WE OFFER OUR SUPPORT .=TO YOU IN YOUR STRUGGLE FOR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING RIGHTS AND .=A MORE HUMANE WELFARE SYSTEM. WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING MORE .=CLOSELY WITH YOU IN THE COMING MONTHS--FAITHFULLY.=

DR MARTIN LUTHER KING JR AND THE STAFF.=="

Sent on May 19, 1966, this message directly coincides with King’s relocation to Chicago in early 1966 to launch the Chicago Freedom Movement, his most ambitious campaign to confront systemic racism in the urban North. Co-led by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and the Coordinating Council of Community Organizations (CCCO), the campaign sought to challenge racial segregation in housing, employment discrimination, and inequities in municipal services. King recognized that structural injustice in Northern cities was just as debilitating as the overt segregation of the South. The IUPAE, a union representing frontline welfare workers, had staged actions demanding not only better workplace conditions but also systemic reforms to a punitive welfare system that disproportionately affected Black and poor communities. By expressing solidarity with public employees fighting for “collective bargaining rights and a more humane welfare system,” King extended his vision of the “Beloved Community” beyond civil rights into economic justice and labor rights, themes that would define his final years. That same year, King endured resistance not only from segregationists but also from local city officials, including Mayor Richard J. Daley, and endured physical threats during open housing marches in white neighborhoods like Marquette Park. His support for labor organizations, particularly in Chicago, foreshadowed the Poor People’s Campaign and his final act of solidarity—marching with striking sanitation workers in Memphis in 1968.

Overall very good condition, with light toning and minor creasing to telegram. Framed under glass in black wood frame. A rare and powerful primary document linking Dr. King's Northern campaign for racial and economic justice with the struggles of organized labor, a direct and material expression of King's belief that “all labor has dignity.”and his "VISION OF A SOCIETY IN WHICH ALL MEN .ARE TREATED WITH JUSTICE". An exceptionally historic piece.

Item #22348

Price: $5,500.00