“There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.”

—Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Meeting is set on February 15, 1965. An historical reality is that Malcolm X’s home was firebombed on February 14, and he was assassinated seven days later.

To appreciate some of the nuances of the dialogue and the interplay between characters, you may want to know more about the real lives of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X in the months leading up to this moment. Below is a timeline of some of their work in the year and a half prior to 1965.

Use this timeline to inform your understanding of the play. If you’d like to view detailed timelines of their lives, visit the Malcolm X Timeline on The Rhetoric of Civil Rights Movement and Major King Events Chronology on the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute.