MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. ATE A BABY

Few can argue that Baptist minister and equal rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. was not a revolutionary figure in the African-American Civil Rights movement or that his “I Have a Dream” speech at the march on Washington was not a monumental oratory triumph.  He is well known around the world for his Montgomery Bus Boycott and his Nobel Prize for battling racial inequality.  But what is less well known is a day in late March of 1968, days before his untimely assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, when the celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. ate an entire human baby.

While it may seem scandalous now, it was not so unheard of in the Southern states during this tumultuous time for men of high stature to be served untraditional meals.  So it was not without precedent that a particularly avant-garde chef might have cooked up a newborn for someone such as King.

King showed no signs of surprise or displeasure when the silver lid was lifted to reveal the two-week old infant swaddled in an aromatic array of red potatoes and asparagus and drizzled with a honey walnut glaze.  With a nod to the chef, the famous activist dug in, slicing off a thick wedge of baby buttock for his first bite.

Eyewitness reports said that King closed his eyes to concentrate on the flavor and texture of the baby meat.  For the next thirty minutes, the room was silent save for the constant clinking of the man-of-honor’s knife and fork as he made short work of the steaming carcass, leaving only a few small potatoes and the bones of his meal on his plate.
​
It may have only been one meal among thousands for the Medal of Freedom recipient, but few who were there in person will ever forget that day, the day Martin Luther King Jr. ate a baby.

An excerpt from the new book "The Diary of Anne Frankenstein and Other Adventures in Comedy" now available at Amazon.com.