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"We Demand Full Employment NOW!" poster from the March on Washington
"We Demand Full Employment NOW!" poster from the March on Washington

"We Demand Full Employment NOW!" poster from the March on Washington

Object number2019.016.0010
DateAugust 1963
ClassificationsArtifacts
Creator Prothro Lithograph Co.
ObjectSign
Credit LineThe Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza Collection
MediumPaper
Dimensions22 1/8 × 14 in. (56.2 × 35.6 cm)
Collections
DescriptionThis paper poster proclaiming, “We Demand Full Employment NOW!” was carried at the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. The poster was created for a group that traveled to the D.C. march on a bus from Compton, California, and it was printed by Prothro Lithograph Co. The front of the poster has red and white printed lettering on a white background. Not many signs carried in the March on Washington survive, so this object represents a unique historical artifact.
Curatorial Commentary
The March on Washington was officially called "The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom," and it brought together around 250,000 people on the National Mall in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The goal of the protest was to draw attention to the continuing inequalities experienced by African Americans across the United States, particularly in terms of employment and social injustices. Civil rights leaders from around the nation spoke including future Congressman John Lewis (representing the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee). The protest wrapped up with Martin Luther King Jr.'s now iconic "I Have A Dream" speech. - Stephanie Allen-Givens, Collections and Exhibits Manager
A number of the Museum's Oral History Project participants witnessed or participated in the March on Washington, including Charles Augins, Charles Black, Clayborne Carson, Ellen Dionna, James Garrett, Doy Gorton, Margaret H. Jordan, Sharlene Kranz, Danny Lyon and Marc Steiner. -- Stephen Fagin, Curator