No individual is more synonymous with the strength, spirit, and success of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s than Martin Luther King, Jr. But what were the inspirations for his beliefs in equal rights and nonviolent resistance? As a thank you for being our customer and in honor of Black History Month, here is a free audio lecture: Martin Luther King, Jr.: Stride Toward Freedom, delivered by award-winning Professor Dennis Dalton of Barnard College, Columbia University.

Martin Luther King, Jr.—through his stirring speeches, introspective writings, and effective leadership—is an essential part of our national consciousness. His powerful legacy remains with us even today, more than 50 years after the Montgomery bus boycott sparked the American civil rights movement. While King's 1968 assassination was a tragic chapter in American history, it did nothing to prevent the work he spent so much of his life carrying out. As Professor Dalton notes, "Violence ended King's life, but his increased stature in America since his death shows that his voice was not silenced."

Listen to Martin Luther King, Jr.: Stride Toward Freedom between now and Monday, February 2, 2009, to discover how the words and actions of this iconic civil rights leader embodied the core values of freedom.