What quotation is inscribed on the tombstone of Martin Luther King?

The powerful, soaring words that concluded Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech now serve as his epitaph. These famous lines are inscribed on the crypt he shares with his wife, Coretta Scott King, at the King Center in Atlanta. The phrase provided the unforgettable finale to his 1963 address at the March on Washington, envisioning a future where all people could join hands and sing of their liberation.

While forever linked to Dr. King, the line was not his own creation. He was quoting an old African American spiritual, a song of hope that had been passed down through generations. By using this traditional refrain, King rooted the Civil Rights Movement's struggle for justice in the much longer history of Black Americans' quest for freedom, connecting the aspirations of 1963 with the enduring faith of those who had been enslaved.

On his tombstone, the quotation takes on a poignant double meaning. In his speech, it was a prophetic call for social and political freedom on Earth. As his epitaph, it becomes a declaration of spiritual freedom in the afterlife, a final, peaceful release from the struggles he faced in his fight for equality.