08/28/2025
This man rollerskated 685 miles to attend Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have A Dream’ speech.
August 28th marks the 60-year anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have A Dream” speech in Washington D.C. It also marks the anniversary of a far less prominent but equally symbolic feat.
“…On August 27, 1963, 27-year old Ledger Smith, aka “Roller Man” made his way into Washington D.C.. His trip originated in Chicago on August 17 and ended 10 days and 685 miles later at the Lincoln Memorial.
His mode of transportation — rollerskates.
As the August 31, 1963 edition of the Baltimore Afro-American reported: “Broad shouldered, lean hipped, ‘Roller Man’ skated into the nation’s capital Tuesday, sore, aching, but hoping he was 700 miles closer to freedom.”
Smith was one of thousands, of all races, who descended on Washington in August of 1963, but his arduous journey was particularly symbolic of the struggle of many African-American’s of his day.
“To dramatize the march, I did it in the slowest way,” Smith told the Afro-American.
Along the way, he received encouragement from many. “He wore a freedom sign across his chest and back. People along the highway, some of them white, said “God bless you,” “I’ll see you in Washington,” “I wish you luck,” according to the Afro-American….”
- full story published on Aug 28, 2015 by Matthew Speiser on businessinsider.com.
- photo of Ledger Smith, a semi-professional skater, greeted by H. Carl Moultie, vice president of the D. C. branch of the NAACP, as he arrived by roller skates from Chicago to join the March on Washington. Photo by Tom Kelley / The Washington Post via Getty Images.
