Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an African-American minister and civil rights activist to whom Toni Morrison writes a tribute in her book. Although Morrison's book does not distinctly focus on the American civil rights movement of the mid-twentieth century, she nevertheless sets aside a few pages in which to articulate how much Martin Luther King Jr. meant to her and means to many others. Her chief point is that his actions and words were such an inspiration that those who looked up to him felt that he imposed upon them -- as observers and supporters -- the burden of being as morally responsible as he himself strove to be. Morrison calls that a "personal responsibility" (129) which she feels immensely grateful for and inspired by.

Romare Bearden

Romare Bearden was an African-American artist famous for his collages and paintings depicting bright scenes, black people, and...