Martin Luther King Jr. in Chicago

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. had visited Chicago many times prior to 1965 to build support for the civil rights movement, but in January 1966 he captured national attention when he moved into an apartment on Chicago’s West Side to protest ghetto conditions. Later in the summer, King participated in marches into all-white neighborhoods that drew angry crowds. The Chicago Freedom Movement marches were part of a campaign to desegregate housing, end slums and address other social problems. After King’s assassination, Chicago erupted in rioting and looting.