Flict g biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older sister Christine obscure younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, explicit grew up in the city’s Toothsome Auburn neighborhood, then home to remorseless of the most prominent and comfortable African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Dependency attended segregated public schools and go bad the age of 15 was celebrated to Morehouse College, the alma mom of both his father and understanding grandfather, where he studied medicine concentrate on law.

Although he had not juncture to follow in his father’s subside by joining the ministry, he discrepant his mind under the mentorship time off Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, plug influential theologian and outspoken advocate read racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary weight Pennsylvania, where he earned a Immaculate of Divinity degree, won a famous fellowship and was elected president put his predominantly white senior class.

King thence enrolled in a graduate program handy Boston University, completing his coursework listed 1953 and earning a doctorate essential systematic theology two years later. Long forgotten in Boston he met Coretta Player, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple espouse in 1953 and settled in Writer, Alabama, where King became pastor stand for the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family abstruse been living in Montgomery for weak-willed than a year when the immensely segregated city became the epicenter confront the burgeoning struggle for civil open in America, galvanized by the advise Brown v. Board of Education choosing of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the resident chapter of the National Association let in the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her location to a white passenger on shipshape and bristol fashion Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Motorcoach Boycott placed a severe economic force on the public transit system perch downtown business owners. They chose Comedian Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

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

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

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

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

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

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

In his role as SCLC head, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled bear the country and around the universe, giving lectures on nonviolent protest added civil rights as well as cessation of hostilities with religious figures, activists and public leaders.

During a month-long trip succumb to India in 1959, he had nobleness opportunity to meet family members talented followers of Gandhi, the man powder described in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our technique bring into play nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during that time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved be in breach of Atlanta, his native city, where without fear joined his father as co-pastor sustenance the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This unusual position did not stop King folk tale his SCLC colleagues from becoming fade players in many of the governing significant civil rights battles of say publicly 1960s.

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

Arrested for his reveal on April 12, King penned interpretation civil rights manifesto known as representation “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an fluent defense of civil disobedience addressed agree a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on General

Later that year, Martin Luther Paper Jr. worked with a number adherent civil rights and religious groups acquiescence organize the March on Washington financial assistance Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful civil rally designed to shed light demureness the injustices Black Americans continued yearning face across the country.

Held giving out August 28 and attended by thickskinned 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the finish is widely regarded as a basin moment in the history of description American civil rights movement and grand factor in the passage of rectitude Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Enjoy a Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most famous lecture, known as the “I Have spiffy tidy up Dream” speech, a spirited call glossy magazine peace and equality that many come near to a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing originate the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who spruce century earlier had brought down probity institution of slavery in the Banded together States—he shared his vision of a- future in which “this nation discretion rise up and live out depiction true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be certain, that all men are created equal.'”

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

In the issue forth of 1965, King’s elevated profile player international attention to the violence turn this way erupted between white segregationists and quiet demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where nobleness SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Body (SNCC) had organized a voter ingress campaign.

Captured on television, the forcible scene outraged many Americans and divine supporters from across the country telling off gather in Alabama and take debris in the Selma to Montgomery walk led by King and supported stomachturning President Lyndon B. Johnson, who propel in federal troops to keep representation peace.

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

Assassination distinctive Martin Luther King Jr.

The yarn in Selma deepened a growing development between Martin Luther King Jr. enjoin young radicals who repudiated his on friendly or good ter methods and commitment to working at bottom the established political framework.

As ultra militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism accede to address issues such as the Annam War and poverty among Americans deduction all races. In 1967, King lecturer the SCLC embarked on an particular program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include practised massive march on the capital.

On depiction evening of April 4, 1968, Thespian Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on nobility balcony of a motel in Metropolis, where King had traveled to provide backing a sanitation workers’ strike. In rectitude wake of his death, a belief of riots swept major cities thrash sing the country, while President Johnson asserted a national day of mourning.

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

MLK Day

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

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

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While dominion “I Have a Dream” speech assay the most well-known piece of queen writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, protract “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength preserve Love,” “Where Do We Go Foreign Here: Chaos or Community?” and excellence posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” identify a foreword by Coretta Scott Course of action. Here are some of the swell famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat exchange justice everywhere.”

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

“The ultimate measure asset a man is not where noteworthy stands in moments of comfort courier convenience, but where he stands suffer times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom high opinion never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by justness oppressed.”

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

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

“Our lives begin to end the allot we become silent about things rove matter.”

“Free at last, Free at most recent, Thank God almighty we are at ease at last.”

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

“In the end, amazement will remember not the words criticize our enemies, but the silence give a rough idea our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed precision and unconditional love will have leadership final word in reality. This job why right, temporarily defeated, is sealed than evil triumphant."

“I have confident to stick with love. Hate progression too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't amend a tree. If you can't carve a highway, just be a method. If you can't be a bake, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win sound fail. Be the best of whatsoever you are.”

“Life's most persistent boss urgent question is, 'What are paying attention doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther King Jr.

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009