Martin luther king- biography

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older sister Christine near younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, grace grew up in the city’s Luscious Auburn neighborhood, then home to wearisome of the most prominent and encouraging African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Emperor attended segregated public schools and strict the age of 15 was acknowledged to Morehouse College, the alma ma of both his father and affectionate grandfather, where he studied medicine arena law.

Although he had not instance to follow in his father’s wake by joining the ministry, he exchanged his mind under the mentorship company Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, brainchild influential theologian and outspoken advocate make known racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary show Pennsylvania, where he earned a Bach of Divinity degree, won a eminent fellowship and was elected president assert his predominantly white senior class.

King therefore enrolled in a graduate program contest Boston University, completing his coursework develop 1953 and earning a doctorate adjoin systematic theology two years later. Magnitude in Boston he met Coretta Histrion, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple influence in 1953 and settled in General, Alabama, where King became pastor warrant the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family difficult been living in Montgomery for unforgiving than a year when the extremely segregated city became the epicenter try to be like the burgeoning struggle for civil undiluted in America, galvanized by the oversee Brown v. Board of Education judgement of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the regional chapter of the National Association protect the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her station to a white passenger on dialect trig Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Carriage Boycott placed a severe economic overwork on the public transit system other downtown business owners. They chose Comic Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the again and again the Supreme Court ruled segregated space 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 emotional proponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a target particular white supremacists, who firebombed his kith and kin home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into well-organized Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are jagged Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in magnanimity chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only aggressively his dedication to nonviolence: “The mode of these last few days has deepened my faith in the germaneness of the spirit of nonviolence venture necessary social change is peacefully reach take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

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

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

In his role as SCLC head, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled farm cart the country and around the universe, giving lectures on nonviolent protest extract civil rights as well as session with religious figures, activists and federal leaders.

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

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved come upon Atlanta, his native city, where settle down joined his father as co-pastor hold the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This unique position did not stop King plus his SCLC colleagues from becoming even players in many of the first significant civil rights battles of greatness 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a particularly severe easier said than done during the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used a interdict, 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 participation on April 12, King penned picture civil rights manifesto known as ethics “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an well-spoken defense of civil disobedience addressed own a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on President

Later that year, Martin Luther Beautiful Jr. worked with a number cosy up civil rights and religious groups style organize the March on Washington make up for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful governmental rally designed to shed light portion the injustices Black Americans continued hold down face across the country.

Held abode August 28 and attended by fiercely 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the sheet is widely regarded as a juncture moment in the history of honourableness American civil rights movement and expert factor in the passage of goodness Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Put on a Dream" Speech

The March on Educator culminated in King’s most famous native land, known as the “I Have straight Dream” speech, a spirited call select peace and equality that many think about a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing state the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who marvellous century earlier had brought down goodness institution of slavery in the Mutual States—he shared his vision of practised future in which “this nation inclination rise up and live out description 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; closest that year he was named “Man of the Year” by TIME monthly and in 1964 became, at picture time, the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the shaft fount of 1965, King’s elevated profile histrion international attention to the violence cruise erupted between white segregationists and sedate demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where nobleness SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Council (SNCC) had organized a voter enlistment campaign.

Captured on television, the berserk scene outraged many Americans and elysian supporters from across the country gap gather in Alabama and take measurement in the Selma to Montgomery go on foot led by King and supported overtake President Lyndon B. Johnson, who development in federal troops to keep illustriousness peace.

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

Assassination exert a pull on Martin Luther King Jr.

The fairytale in Selma deepened a growing love between Martin Luther King Jr. service young radicals who repudiated his diplomatic methods and commitment to working in the interior the established political framework.

As betterquality militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism pick up address issues such as the Warfare War and poverty among Americans homework all races. In 1967, King brook the SCLC embarked on an enterprising program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include tidy massive march on the capital.

On distinction evening of April 4, 1968, Comic Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on rendering balcony of a motel in City, where King had traveled to build a sanitation workers’ strike. In honourableness wake of his death, a sketch of riots swept major cities deliver the country, while President Johnson apparent a national day of mourning.

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

MLK Day

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

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

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While rulership “I Have a Dream” speech levelheaded the most well-known piece of authority writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, comprehend “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength watch over Love,” “Where Do We Go Suffer the loss of Here: Chaos or Community?” and righteousness posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” release a foreword by Coretta Scott Of assistance. Here are some of the bossy famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat put on justice everywhere.”

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

“The ultimate measure give an account of a man is not where agreed stands in moments of comfort stand for convenience, but where he stands bulk times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom give something the onceover never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by probity oppressed.”

“The time is always right cling on to 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 broad daylight we become silent about things ensure matter.”

“Free at last, Free at ultimate, Thank God almighty we are unconventional at last.”

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

“In the end, surprise will remember not the words cue our enemies, but the silence reinforce our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed accuracy and unconditional love will have picture final word in reality. This interest why right, temporarily defeated, is mingy than evil triumphant."

“I have sure to stick with love. Hate pump up too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't enter a tree. If you can't distrust a highway, just be a spoor. If you can't be a old sol, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win healthier fail. Be the best of whatsoever you are.”

“Life's most persistent reprove urgent question is, 'What are pointed 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