The “I Have a Dream” speech was written and delivered by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Role of Martin Luther King Jr.
Dr. King crafted the speech as a statement of civil and economic rights and a call to end racism in the United States. He delivered it on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
Help from Close Advisers
While Dr. King was the author and orator, he received drafting assistance from close advisers such as Clarence B. Jones and Stanley Levison, who helped outline the written text before King revised it into his own final words. The most famous “I have a dream” refrain itself drew on themes King had already been preaching in earlier speeches and was expanded extemporaneously during the address.
