Above, watch civil rights activist Julian Bond in conversation with Aspen Institute President and CEO Walter Isaacson.
Civil rights activist Julian Bond passed away Saturday at age 75. The former NAACP chairman is known for his significant role in the civil rights movement. Last year, at an Aspen Around Town event at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC, Bond spoke about his work with Martin Luther King, Jr. in the mid-1960s as the movement gained momentum. He also shared thoughts on recent rights movements.
“I’ve been fond of saying that I don’t believe there’s such a thing as gay rights, they’re just rights,” Bond said during the conversation. “There’s not such a thing as black rights, they’re just rights. We all have these rights.”
The March 2014 conversation was part of a discussion titled “The Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s ‘Letter from Birmingham City Jail,’” featuring US Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey, Yale Law professor Stephen L. Carter, and Washington National Cathedral Dean Gary Hall, in conversation with Aspen Institute President and CEO Walter Isaacson. See photos and videos from the discussion here.
