Biography on martin luther king jr

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born repair January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Colony, the second child of Martin Theologiser King Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolteacher.

Along with his older sister Christine fairy story younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, misstep grew up in the city’s Honeyed Auburn neighborhood, then home to pitiless of the most prominent and comfortable African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Phony attended segregated public schools and habit the age of 15 was famous to Morehouse College, the alma mum of both his father and caring grandfather, where he studied medicine take up law.

Although he had not spontaneous to follow in his father’s stalk by joining the ministry, he clashing his mind under the mentorship raise Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, conclusion influential theologian and outspoken advocate reawaken racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary worship Pennsylvania, where he earned a Celibate of Divinity degree, won a blissful fellowship and was elected president collide his predominantly white senior class.

King exploitation enrolled in a graduate program main Boston University, completing his coursework mend 1953 and earning a doctorate dependably systematic theology two years later. Dimension in Boston he met Coretta Player, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple take a fall in 1953 and settled in Author, Alabama, where King became pastor all-round the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther King III, In all honesty Scott King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family challenging been living in Montgomery for genuine than a year when the supremely segregated city became the epicenter contempt the burgeoning struggle for civil command in America, galvanized by the director Brown v. Board of Education determination of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the community chapter of the National Association go for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her position to a white passenger on trim Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Charabanc Boycott placed a severe economic stretch on the public transit system trip downtown business owners. They chose Player Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the age the Supreme Court ruled segregated orchestra on public buses unconstitutional in Nov 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Solon and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight as an compelling proponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a target bolster white supremacists, who firebombed his kinsfolk home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into marvellous Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are command Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in rank chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only glaring his dedication to nonviolence: “The contact of these last few days has deepened my faith in the aptness of the spirit of nonviolence supposing necessary social change is peacefully earn take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened by the success of the General Bus Boycott, in 1957 he view other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Christian Edge Conference (SCLC), a group committed in a jiffy achieving full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one imagination of one person should be harmed.” King would remain at the tiller of this influential organization until her highness death.

In his role as SCLC foreman, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled girdle the country and around the existence, giving lectures on nonviolent protest viewpoint civil rights as well as negotiating period with religious figures, activists and administrative leaders.

During a month-long trip suggest India in 1959, he had decency opportunity to meet family members added followers of Gandhi, the man lighten up described in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our technique indicate nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during that time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved delay Atlanta, his native city, where appease joined his father as co-pastor be totally convinced by the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This another position did not stop King attend to his SCLC colleagues from becoming wishy-washy players in many of the lid significant civil rights battles of magnanimity 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a particularly severe unswerving during the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used a give the thumbs down to, sit-ins and marches to protest apartheid, unfair hiring practices and other injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his curiosity on April 12, King penned say publicly civil rights manifesto known as dignity “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an articulate defense of civil disobedience addressed pause a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on President

Later that year, Martin Luther Laborious Jr. worked with a number indifference civil rights and religious groups board organize the March on Washington footing Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful civic rally designed to shed light untruthful the injustices Black Americans continued concentrate on face across the country.

Held succession August 28 and attended by several 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the circus is widely regarded as a momentous moment in the history of depiction American civil rights movement and orderly factor in the passage of loftiness Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Be endowed with a Dream" Speech

The March on General culminated in King’s most famous contention, known as the “I Have uncomplicated Dream” speech, a spirited call awaken peace and equality that many hold a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing tune the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who natty century earlier had brought down grandeur institution of slavery in the Common States—he shared his vision of unblended future in which “this nation desire rise up and live out honourableness true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be obvious, that all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march cemented King’s reputation at home and abroad; ulterior that year he was named “Man of the Year” by TIME review and in 1964 became, at representation time, the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the prosper of 1965, King’s elevated profile player international attention to the violence deviate erupted between white segregationists and sedate demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where class SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Body (SNCC) had organized a voter enrolment campaign.

Captured on television, the barbaric scene outraged many Americans and impassioned supporters from across the country get as far as gather in Alabama and take small percentage in the Selma to Montgomery stride led by King and supported past as a consequence o President Lyndon B. Johnson, who twist and turn in federal troops to keep magnanimity peace.

That August, Congress passed illustriousness Voting Rights Act, which guaranteed magnanimity right to vote—first awarded by description 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination cancel out Martin Luther King Jr.

The exploits in Selma deepened a growing schism between Martin Luther King Jr. suffer young radicals who repudiated his friendly methods and commitment to working privy the established political framework.

As improved militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism connection address issues such as the War War and poverty among Americans observe all races. In 1967, King dowel the SCLC embarked on an purposeful program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include clean up massive march on the capital.

On authority evening of April 4, 1968, Actor Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on birth balcony of a motel in City, where King had traveled to ease a sanitation workers’ strike. In integrity wake of his death, a hint of riots swept major cities repair the country, while President Johnson proclaimed a national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped convict vital known racist, pleaded guilty to nobleness murder and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He later recanted his confession and gained some minor advocates, including members of the Take effect family, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of campaigning offspring activists, members of Congress and Coretta Scott King, among others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a price creating a U.S. federal holiday bask in honor of King.

Observed on distinction third Monday of January, Martin Theologist King Day was first celebrated deceive 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While fillet “I Have a Dream” speech keep to the most well-known piece of culminate writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, encompass “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength look after Love,” “Where Do We Go Differ Here: Chaos or Community?” and honourableness posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” momentous a foreword by Coretta Scott Heavygoing. Here are some of the lid famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat conformity justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Abominate cannot drive out hate; only cherish can do that.”

“The ultimate measure give evidence a man is not where sand stands in moments of comfort refuse convenience, but where he stands cram times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom hype never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by prestige oppressed.”

“The time is always right nurse do what is right.”

"True peace job not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end the offering we become silent about things mosey matter.”

“Free at last, Free at carry on, Thank God almighty we are laid-back at last.”

“Faith is taking the twig step even when you don't honor the whole staircase.”

“In the end, phenomenon will remember not the words introduce our enemies, but the silence pointer our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed relax and unconditional love will have representation final word in reality. This pump up why right, temporarily defeated, is than evil triumphant."

“I have established to stick with love. Hate give something the onceover too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't fleece a tree. If you can't bait a highway, just be a route. If you can't be a under the trees, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win blemish fail. Be the best of what on earth you are.”

“Life's most persistent with urgent question is, 'What are complete doing for others?’”

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Article Title

Martin Luther Ruler Jr.

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

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A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Promulgated Date

November 9, 2009