Jim Capraro has 35 years of community organizing and development experience. In the early 1970’s he worked as a community organizer pursuing the passage of the Federal Home Mortgage Disclosure, and Community Reinvestment Acts. Today, he is the Principal of Capraro Consulting and serves as CEO of the Greater Southwest Development Corporation.

He grew up a block and a half from Chicago’s Marquette Park. On Aug. 5, 1966, a 16-year old Jim watched as someone distributed empty bottles to the angry mob that gathered to stop Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Marquette Park March. Jim watched as people started hurling the bottles at Dr. King and the marchers over the line of police officers.

Dr. King reflected on the Marquette Park March as “the first step on a 1,000 mile journey.” This march, occurring in a major Northern city, is as integral to the legacy of Dr. King and the history of the civil rights movement as the March from Selma to Montgomery or the March on Washington.

The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Living Memorial Project commemorates the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s historic August 5, 1966 march through Chicago’s Marquette Park. This video is part of the project’s efforts to capture the stories of individuals directly involved in this important march. Recalling the larger legacy of the march – and remembering the struggle for justice and equity – is more urgent now than ever in our city, across our nation and around the world.