TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Mar 5, 2026

The late Rev. James M. Lawson Jr. was a Memphis pastor who served as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s chief tactician and strategist during the pivotal 1968 sanitation workers strike, the events surrounding which ultimately led to King's assassination. Lawson, a lifelong advocate of nonviolent resistance, was remembered at a Feb. 20 book launch event at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis as a "tactical creator and spiritual leader" of the civil rights movement. The event marked the release of his memoir, "Nonviolent: A Memoir of Resistance, Agitation, and Love," co-written with Memphis author Emily Yellin, whose own family had deep roots in documenting the events of 1968. Lawson died in June 2024 at age 95, but his son described the memoir as an accurate reflection of his father's voice and legacy. The Commercial Appeal has more on the event.