Jones: MLK wrote 'Letter from Birmingham Jail' entirely from memory
Dr. Clarence B. Jones · Ben Horowitz in Conversation w/ Dr. Clarence B. Jones, MLK's Advisor and Speechwriter · Jan 31, 2025 · at 42:31
Dr. Clarence B. Jones, speechwriter and lawyer to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., recounts smuggling paper into Birmingham Jail and discovering King wrote his famous text entirely from memory.
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“He didn't have any books. He didn't have anything. So I said to him, I said, listen, Martin, you'll get no credit for being able to quote scripture. You've got a PhD in theology. Most of the school is theology. You're supposed to be able to do that. But the dude would be quoting Thoreau. The dude would be quoting Engels. The dude would be quoting verbatim. I was there. He didn't have anything to look at. He did this out of his head.”
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