Poor people’s Campaign marches on Harrisburg

The year 1968 was considered a monumental year in American history.  The Civil Rights Movement was at its height, protests over the war in Vietnam grew, the Democratic National Convention in Chicago was disrupted by violent protests and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Sen. Robert Kennedy were assasinated.  Before he was killed, Dr. King started “The Poor People’s Campaign” to fight racism, poverty and militarism.

Fifty years later, The Poor People’s Campaign has been resurrected. Renamed The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival — the protest movement is described as a “non-violent six-week season demanding new programs to fight poverty and racism, immediate attention to ecological devastation and measures to curb militarism and the war economy.”  Protests have been going on in nearly three dozen states, including Pennsylvania.

The campaign kicked off in Harrisburg last week.  After a rally, 13 people were arrested for blocking traffic.

So what does The Poor People’s Campaign want to achieve?

That’s a question we’ll ask on Tuesday’s Smart Talk.  Our guests are Leslie Avila from the group Movement of Immigrant Leaders and Rabbi Michael Pollack of March On Harrisburg.