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Updated: Wednesday 9:45 a.m. | Posted: Tuesday 9:34 a.m.

Looking to learn more about American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.? 

Looking to remember his life and his work on this 50th anniversary of the day he was gunned down on a balcony outside his hotel room in Memphis, Tenn.?  

King, the eloquent American Baptist minister who moved a nation toward equality, was 39 when he was assassinated on April 4, 1968.

Here's a roundup of events across Minnesota and links to more information to learn about the man and the movement. 

Understanding King's complex legacy five decades later

MLK events around Twin Cities

Learn about the Civil Rights movement

Hear a collection of King's speeches

Attend a local event for Martin Luther King

 is invited to gather on Wednesday to remember and honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr on the 50th anniversary of his death. Duluth Mayor Emily Larson and Duluth's Human Rights Officer Carl Crawford will feature opening remarks on the steps of City Hall facing Priley Drive from noon to 1 p.m.

A community conversation will be held Wednesday at YWCA Minneapolis Midtown from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The event asks participants to wear black as a sign of respect. 

 will host a concert entitled Lift Every Voice and Sing: Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The concert will be held at 

 in Excelsior, Minn., from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. April 15. Tickets are $18 for adults, $10 for students.

Learn more about King and the Civil Rights movement

Half a century after his assassination, King remains one of the most vivid symbols of hope for racial unity in America. But that's not the way he was viewed in the last year of his life.

Historically Black podcast: The Spirit of the Million Man March

 is recreated through the conversation between a young woman and her father, who attended it.

He talks about how the event changed his life, and she recalls what it meant to see a poster of the march hanging on the wall of her father's den since she was a girl.

Here's a timeline from Historically Black providing a scope of the civil rights struggle from the 

: Ambassador Andrew Young says King "did everything he could to be an ordinary person but became a man of destiny."

: In honor of Martin Luther King Day, U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. offers reflections on King's "I Have A Dream" speech.

: Voices of Minnesota: Chuck McDew is a founder and first chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, or SNCC, and Willie Mae Wilson was one of thousands who marched with SNCC to end segregation in southern cities.

: Minnesota Public Radio's Stephen Smith interviews best-selling author Hampton Sides about his new book, "Hellhound on His Trail: The Stalking of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the International Hunt for His Assassin."

: Families in the Hawthorne neighborhood of north Minneapolis got a chance to mark King's birthday in a 21st century fashion — with technology.

 King made several visits to Minnesota during his lifetime. His last came in 1967, a year before he was assassinated.

: 18 historic images from the 1963 March on Washington: The march featured King's iconic "I Have a Dream" speech in front of an estimated 250,000.

Address to the first Montgomery Improvement Association, Dec. 5, 1955

Martin Luther King speech, Holt Street Baptist Church (text + audio)

This speech follows the date that Rosa Parks was arrested, the event that catalyzed the 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 1962 Speech in NYC

This speech, held at the Park-Sheraton Hotel to New York's Civil War Centennial Commission, speaks about the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.

Martin Luther King | "I Have A Dream" Speech

This speech, given in front of more than 250,000 people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial, asked that the citizens strive to set aside division and end racism.

I Have Been to the Mountaintop, April 3, 1968

I Have Been to the Mountaintop Full Speech

King's last speech before his death alluded to the threat of violence against his life before. Prior to the speech, King had almost lost his life from 

 was delayed so security could check the plane for explosives. But his death the following day leaves some of his words to appear prophetic.

Correction (April 4, 2018): The original version of this story included an event from 2017. The article has been updated.

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Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.'s life will be remembered at a number of events around Minneapolis and St. Paul on the 50th anniversary of his assassination.

How to remember the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. this week in Minnesota

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