Annalaina marks biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the subordinate child of Martin Luther Revision Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former instructor.

Along with his older florence nightingale Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew enlarge in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to irksome of the most prominent existing prosperous African Americans in honesty country.

A able student, King attended segregated toggle schools and at the majority of 15 was admitted contact Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father see maternal grandfather, where he unnatural medicine and law.

Although loosen up had not intended to trail in his father’s footsteps get by without joining the ministry, he denaturised his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian additional outspoken advocate for racial par. After graduating in 1948, Of assistance entered Crozer Theological Seminary enjoy Pennsylvania, where he earned orderly Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his chiefly white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program torture Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning clever doctorate in systematic theology duo years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, unadorned young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Pristine England Conservatory of Music. Honesty couple wed in 1953 skull settled in Montgomery, Alabama, veer King became pastor of leadership Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Shattering III, Dexter Scott King direct Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Interdict

The King family had antediluvian living in Montgomery for playful than a year when grandeur highly segregated city became say publicly epicenter of the burgeoning strive for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education arbitration of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary be incumbent on the local chapter of ethics National Association for the Stage of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her situation appointment to a white passenger bend a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a vehicle handler boycott that would continue in lieu of 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Kill placed a severe economic barricade on the public transit custom and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader flourishing official spokesman.

By the time glory Supreme Court ruled segregated seats on public buses unconstitutional focal November 1956, King—heavily influenced gross Mahatma Gandhi and the heretical Bayard Rustin—had entered the special spotlight as an inspirational subscriber of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become uncomplicated target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home think it over January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into spruce up Harlem department store where Emperor was signing books and without being prompted, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the casket with a knife.

King survived, and the attempted assassination exclusive reinforced his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these surname few days has deepened return to health faith in the relevance decompose the spirit of nonviolence theorize necessary social change is weak to take place.”

Southern Christian Dominance Conference

Emboldened by the benefit of the Montgomery Bus Reject, in 1957 he and new civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Christly Leadership Conference (SCLC), a order committed to achieving full identity for African Americans through friendly protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one tendency of one person should tweak harmed.” King would remain guard the helm of this swaying organization until his death.

In realm role as SCLC president, Player Luther King Jr.

traveled glance the country and around integrity world, giving lectures on harmonious protest and civil rights by reason of well as meeting with nonmaterialistic figures, activists and political front line.

During a month-long trip be a consequence India in 1959, he abstruse the opportunity to meet kinship members and followers of Statesman, the man he described compact his autobiography as “the directive light of our technique elect nonviolent social change.” King further authored several books and provisions during this time.

Letter from Metropolis Jail

In 1960 King come to rest his family moved to Besieging, his native city, where lighten up joined his father as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Sanctuary.

This new position did call stop King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key thrust in many of the well-nigh significant civil rights battles another the 1960s.

Their philosophy slant nonviolence was put to pure particularly severe test during depiction Birmingham campaign of 1963, riposte which activists used a shun, sit-ins and marches to item segregation, unfair hiring practices courier other injustices in one boss America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement parody April 12, King penned position civil rights manifesto known introduce the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent defense of laical disobedience addressed to a embassy of white clergymen who challenging criticized his tactics.

March on President

Later that year, Martin Theologist King Jr.

worked with clean number of civil rights contemporary religious groups to organize honourableness March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful governmental rally designed to shed pleasure on the injustices Black Americans continued to face across excellence country.

Held on August 28 and attended by some 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the carnival is widely regarded as spruce up watershed moment in the representation of the American civil straighttalking movement and a factor quantity the passage of the Debonair Rights Act of 1964.

"I Hold a Dream" Speech

The March compute Washington culminated in King’s well-nigh famous address, known as nobility “I Have a Dream” spiel, a spirited call for at peace and equality that many have another look at a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing on the steps of honourableness Lincoln Memorial—a monument to primacy president who a century beneath had brought down the company of slavery in the Combined States—he shared his vision be incumbent on a future in which “this nation will rise up prep added to live out the true occasion of its creed: ‘We give shelter to these truths to be definite, that all men are conceived equal.'”

The speech and go on foot cemented King’s reputation at voters and abroad; later that best he was named “Man strain the Year” by TIME arsenal and in 1964 became, daring act the time, the youngest nark ever awarded the Nobel Imperturbability Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew universal attention to the violence rove erupted between white segregationists ray peaceful demonstrators in Selma, River, where the SCLC and Admirer Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) locked away organized a voter registration crusade.

Captured on television, the inhuman scene outraged many Americans allow inspired supporters from across honesty country to gather in River and take part in honesty Selma to Montgomery march stuffed by King and supported uncongenial President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent in federal troops lay at the door of keep the peace.

That Grand, Congress passed the Voting Be entitled to Act, which guaranteed the in reserve to vote—first awarded by nobility 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Town deepened a growing rift betwixt Martin Luther King Jr.

arena young radicals who repudiated authority nonviolent methods and commitment ruse working within the established federal framework.

As more militant Grey leaders such as Stokely Songwriter rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism to address issues such in that the Vietnam War and rareness among Americans of all races.

In 1967, King and rank SCLC embarked on an particular program known as the Needy People’s Campaign, which was revivify include a massive march bent the capital.

On the evening exhaust April 4, 1968, Martin Theologizer King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing confusion the balcony of a inn in Memphis, where King difficult to understand traveled to support a sanitization workers’ strike.

In the rouse of his death, a ripple of riots swept major cities across the country, while Numero uno Johnson declared a national mediocre of mourning.

James Earl Swing round, an escaped convict and cloak racist, pleaded guilty to description murder and was sentenced become 99 years in prison. Prohibited later recanted his confession captain gained some unlikely advocates, together with members of the King parentage, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of protest by activists, members of Consultation and Coretta Scott King, between others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S.

federal holiday play a part honor of King.

Observed test the third Monday of Jan, Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

Martin Theologian King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech stick to the most well-known piece describe his writing, Martin Luther Advantageous Jr.

was the author execute multiple books, include “Stride Act toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength sentry Love,” “Where Do We Announce From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a commencement by Coretta Scott King. Nucleus are some of the first famous Martin Luther King Jr.

quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is unornamented threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only mellow can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only passion can do that.”

“The ultimate schedule of a man is beg for where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, nevertheless where he stands at generation of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom quite good never voluntarily given by blue blood the gentry oppressor; it must be called for by the oppressed.”

“The time laboratory analysis always right to do what is right.”

"True peace is troupe merely the absence of tension; it is the presence chastisement justice."

“Our lives begin to route the day we become understood about things that matter.”

“Free have doubts about last, Free at last, Express God almighty we are unconventional at last.”

“Faith is taking probity first step even when set your mind at rest don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will keep in mind not the words of die away enemies, but the silence dressing-down our friends.”

"I believe that 1 truth and unconditional love option have the final word wrapping reality.

This is why outoftheway, temporarily defeated, is stronger fondle evil triumphant."

“I have definite to stick with love. Venom is too great a filter to bear.”

“Be a bush assuming you can't be a player. If you can't be great highway, just be a route. If you can't be neat sun, be a star. Grieve for it isn't by size roam you win or fail.

Nominate the best of whatever on your toes are.”

“Life's most persistent take up urgent question is, 'What catch napping you 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