New York City Held a Special Place in MLK's Heart

Dr. Martin Luther King's dream lives on . . .(Minnesota Historical Society/Wikimedia Commons)

America's 'most liberal city' was special to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

New York City — Someone asked King for his definition of love. "Love is the greatest force in the universe," King answered. "It is the heartbeat of the moral cosmos. He who loves is a participant in the being of God."

Just as the Beatles' catalog could be summed up with "All You Need is Love," the same holds for King's iconic worldview.

Love. ...

"Love," when narrowed down to its DNA, simply means oneness. Perhaps this explains why the aim of true enlightenment isn’t to realize your unity with everything but to realize the fact — you are everything.

Love. ...

King loved New York City. Everything for which the homeland of Lady Liberty stood for, King appreciated. From 1961 to April 1967, he delivered six iconic speeches in the Big Apple.

As a reverend, KIng also preached at churches across the city.

On Dec. 17, 1964, Mayor Wagner awarded King the City of New York Medallion of Honor.

“Dr. King, with this historic symbol of our city goes the abiding admiration of all our citizens for you, for the movement you champion and for the ideals of brotherhood and peace which you so nobly advance,” Wagner said during the ceremony.

King felt loved in the Big Apple. So he loved her back.

In short, from having an African-American mayor to being the first major city to give widespread voting rights to non-citizens, it's no wonder Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. loved New York City.