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Color corrected by Pat Cagney.
Dr. Martin Luther King is Confronted by police at the funeral of Medgar Evers, Jackson, Mississippi.
Color corrected by Pat Cagney.
Color corrected by Pat Cagney.

Dr. Martin Luther King is Confronted by police at the funeral of Medgar Evers, Jackson, Mississippi.

Artist Ernest C. Withers (American, 1922-2007)
DateJune 1963
MediumGelatin silver print
DimensionsOverall, Image: 14 5/8 × 17 7/8 in. (37.1 × 45.4 cm)
Overall: 16 × 19 7/8 in. (40.6 × 50.5 cm)
Overall, Mat: 22 1/8 × 26 1/16 in. (56.2 × 66.2 cm)
ClassificationsCivil Rights Movement
Credit LinePurchase in Memory of Alice R. and Sol B. Frank, and the Art Purchase Fund
Object number97.21.6
Terms
  • Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
  • Civil Rights
  • Men
  • Women
  • African-American Artist
  • Black
  • White
On View
Not on view
DescriptionDr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is stopped by police at Medgar Ever's Funeral.

Label TextErnest C. Withers American (b. 1922) Dr. Martin Luther King is Confronted by police at the funeral of Medgar Evers, Jackson, Mississippi, June 1963 Gelatin-silver print, 1990s Museum purchase, in memory of Alice R. and Sol B. Frank, and the Art Purchase Fund 97.21.6 Enduring great personal risk, Ernest Withers became a major photographer of the Civil Rights Movement. Working as a freelance photographer he sold his photographs to African-American newspapers around the United States. These images helped to make the battles of the Movement known. In the 1950s, he photographed players of the Negro Baseball League, including such icons as Jackie Robinson and Willie Mays. After returning from World War II, Withers maintained a studio either on or near Memphis's legendary Beale Street, where he photographed a significant number of emerging blues, jazz, and rock and roll performers such as B. B. King, Tina Turner, Ray Charles, Isaac Hayes, and Aretha Franklin. Edited By: CW Edited Date: 2007 Approved By: ERL Approval Date: 2007
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