INDIANAPOLIS (WTHR) - Tuesday marked the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
It also marked the 50th anniversary of Senator Robert Kennedy's speech informing Indianapolis of the tragedy.
A ceremony held at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Park marked both events Wednesday and included Kerry Kennedy, daughter of the senator, and Congressman John Lewis, who marched with King but was with Kennedy in Indianapolis on the night of the assassination.
The cold did not deter the brave, the curious or the young. They came to hear a legend.
"This is hard," Lewis (D-GA) admitted. He told the crowd he had not returned to this park after April 4, 1968 until now.
"It was breathtaking, extremely moving. Chills the whole time, listening to him describe his experiences and knowledge of race and justice and equality.
“Congressman Lewis is a beacon of hope and courage," said City-County Councilor Zach Adamson afterward.
"It was definitely moving. You felt like you were with him at that time during the speech. Very moving, talking about how many times he had been arrested. I didn't realize he had been arrested that many times," Carmen Clark observed.
More than one person in the crowd described it as chilling. They weren’t referring to the weather.
"I thought it was fabulous and yet very moving at the same time. I thought it was sad that we are still repeating message that in many ways, things have not moved forward," said Patricia Dudeck, Indianapolis.
"As a young person, a younger person who obviously was not there, taking the opportunity to learn more about what that day meant for him as well as what Robert Kennedy contributed to that day," Mandla Moio from Indianapolis observed.
"It was a great history lesson but it's also very applicable to what is happening today. Some of the same things that were talked about 50 years ago still apply today," Carmen Clark added.
It was a chance to learn from the past and pass it along for those who are looking toward the future. The hope is the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Park will become just that.
Shirley Barnett can relate. She was here fifty years ago. She was only ten at the time and now she has her 6-year-old granddaughter Esperanza with her. It’s her chance to pass along family history.
"I think my granddaughter needed to see this because this is history, something that will never go away and she is standing here 50 years ago, her grandmother was ten years old," said Barnett.
"It looks like they are cut right there and they reach out, coming together," she said, pointing toward the outstretched hands of the Kennedy King memorial.