Interview with Reverend Dr. B. Herbert Martin Sr.

Length: 84 minutes Interview with Reverend B. Herbert Martin, Sr. by Matthew Kevin Robinson Rev. Martin begins by describing his childhood in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, the oldest all-Black community in America, with his parents, grandparents, and nine siblings. He describes his strong religious upbringing and how he was called to ministry at the age of nine. He recounts being attacked and severely beaten by a group of “vigilante” white men for trying to register Black people to vote. He talks of his time at Philander Smith College, working for a wealthy retired counsel general, and the first churches he pastored for. He remembers his experiences trying to attending Payne Theological Seminary while working for the juvenile court in Dayton and how that led to his family moving to Chicago, eventually enrolling at Garrett Theological Seminary. He recalls the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. and the chaos that ensued. He details his participation in the DNC protests, sheltering protesters in his church, and being charged for aiding and abetting fugitives as a result. He gives his perspective on the political scene in 1968, Black Power movement and religious activism, and the continuing struggle for equality and against racism in Chicago and America writ large