If you aren't clear on what the March on Washington was about, click here.
It helped set the stage for the passage of the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act. Kennedy's assassination is argued to have also been a motivating factor as was LBJ's asencion to the presidency and his desire to make his mark on history.
Is was one of a series of events that created a window of opportunity for the passage of civil rights bills. Ironically, the 50th anniversary coincides with recent court decisions that have rolled back the impact some of those bills.
The anniversary has given people the chance to speculate on the state of race relations in the country and how things have changed - or not - since the march. Click here for some charts highlighting these changes.
Charts showing economic conditions paint a diofferent picture than those focusedon political participation.
I'll post examples separately.
