Humanities & Cultures

Happy MLK Day!

Several years ago, near Chester, Pa., Jason Ipock’s aunt was looking to downsize now that she had retired. In her possession was a collection of old family home videos that took up too much room.

Some of the films were in worn-out film canisters, and Ipock worried they’d soon be unplayable. “I decided that I should have the family films digitized, so that we’ll always have a copy in the event of a catastrophe,” he said.

One had a label that stood out from the others: “Martin Luther King.” Ipock had heard stories about this film for years from his aunt and grandmother, Mary Ipock, and decided to digitize it first by going to a film store in Philadelphia.

The result was an MP4 file, a 13-minute film – in color.