Bermudians mark the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr today with a celebration of his life, starting at 12.30pm on the steps of City Hall.

Local activist Glenn Fubler, organiser of the event, recalled hearing of Dr King as a child.

Describing himself as “an early follower”, Mr Fubler said he became “estranged” in his late teens as he grew enamoured of the Black Power Movement.

“I thought nonviolence was soft,” Mr Fubler said. “Later, I found how significant it was, how courageous they were — not just Dr King but many extremely brave people.”

In 1968, a decade into the open fight against segregation, Bermuda simmered with racial tension. The island was still months away from adopting universal adult suffrage.

Activist and historian Eva Hodgson said: “Whatever happens in the United States, particularly race relations, has always been a touchstone for black Bermudians.”

Dr King’s death on April 4 “was a significant, dramatic event for black Bermudians”, she said.

The Governor, Lord Martonmere, ordered flags to be lowered to half-mast on the day of Dr King’s funeral, and services were held island-wide as the US observed a day of mourning.

According to The Royal Gazette, Reverend Allan Kerry at Emmanuel Baptist Church, a childhood friend of Dr King, had met the civil rights leader the previous September in Washington.

“I said it would be good if he could come down here for a rest,” the pastor was quoted as saying. Dr King might have visited that autumn, he added.

Mr Fubler noted that Bermuda had been affected by riots just weeks after, when young people denied admission to the April 25 Floral Pageant reacted violently.

“It was definitely related to the assassination and its aftermath,” Mr Fubler said.

Dr King’s popularity had waned with some civil rights leaders by the time of his murder.

Mr Fubler said: “Strangely enough, there was also a sense of hope. The movement for social justice is a global movement. By definition, it leaves a legacy.”

Last night, David Burt, the Premier, urged Bermudians to look on Dr King as “not just a dreamer”.

“Instead, embrace his life’s work and witness in its entirety,” Mr Burt said. “Heed his call to upend historic systems of inequality and demand change that lifts up people in society who have always inhabited the margins of justice and economic success.”

Leah Scott, Deputy Leader of the Opposition, extolled Dr King’s power to love his enemies through constant oppression, adding: “Choosing to show love enables us to release our judgments, opinions and expectations of people.”