Community Corner

Samuel 'Billy' Kyles Recounts Martin Luther King Jr's Last Minutes

Rev. Samuel Billy Kyles was standing next to Martin Luther King Jr. when he was shot on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis April 4, 1968. In this video he recounts those moments and why "the dream is still alive."

Rev. Samuel Billy Kyles moved with his family down to Memphis, Tennessee in the 1950s to open a church and play a major role in the Civil Rights movement.

The day Dr. King was shot, he was standing next to him on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel.

At last year's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Human Dignity Award Breakfast hosted by the YMCA of San Diego County, Kyles recounts those moments which would forever after become a part of American history. How the hotel manager heard the shot, came out, saw Dr. King and had a heart attack.

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How he was "doing what needed to be done" after MLK was shot, why he feels he was meant to be there and why King's dream of an America for all is still alive.

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