Rita Moreno recounts watching Martin Luther King Jr.'s 'I Have a Dream' speech in person
Not many people can claim they watched Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech live and in person, but Rita Moreno can.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, the 88-year-old revealed she was seated just mere feet away from the civil rights movement leader at the Lincoln Memorial as history unfolded in front of her on Aug. 28, 1963.
"I was there. I remember everything," the "One Day at a Time" star recounted. "We were sitting literally, no more than 15 feet away from Dr. King. Harry Belafonte put together a Hollywood contingent, because he wanted Dr. King to know that there were people in our profession who were very serious and sincere about this whole business."
She then noted how Dr. King started reading from a speech, but soon tucked it away and started improvising after gospel singer Mahalia Jackson urged him to speak about the dream he had.
"I still can't talk about it without getting these giant goosebumps," Moreno recalled. "It was so exciting and I remember looking [behind] me, where the pool is at the Washington Monument, and there were thousands and thousands of people."
The EGOT winner mentally told herself, "don't forget one detail about this."
"It was the most extraordinary experience I've ever had," Moreno gushed. "That really activated me."
The "West Side Story" star detailed how she dedicated her life to activism after that speech, fighting against racial stereotyping in Hollywood.
Moreno promised, despite facing harassment and heartbreak in the industry, she will always keep moving forward and continue promoting meaningful change.
