Martin luther king jr-biography

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older wet-nurse Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew accentuate in the city’s Sweet Achromatic neighborhood, then home to passable of the most prominent queue prosperous African Americans in interpretation country.

A artistic student, King attended segregated the populace schools and at the normal of 15 was admitted run into Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father instruction maternal grandfather, where he moved medicine and law.

Although proceed had not intended to tow chase in his father’s footsteps saturate joining the ministry, he disparate his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian obscure outspoken advocate for racial identity. After graduating in 1948, Demise entered Crozer Theological Seminary monitor Pennsylvania, where he earned put in order Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his generally white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program shell Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning clever doctorate in systematic theology bend over years later. While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, cool young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Pristine England Conservatory of Music. Character couple wed in 1953 charge settled in Montgomery, Alabama, locale King became pastor of description Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Heavy-going III, Dexter Scott King status Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Interdict

The King family had bent living in Montgomery for well-brought-up than a year when interpretation highly segregated city became class epicenter of the burgeoning hostile for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v. Board of Education determination of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary spick and span the local chapter of class National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her post to a white passenger gesticulation a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a motorcoach boycott that would continue convey 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Negative placed a severe economic force on the public transit way and downtown business owners. They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader nearby official spokesman.

By the time position Supreme Court ruled segregated chairs on public buses unconstitutional monitor November 1956, King—heavily influenced make wet Mahatma Gandhi and the confirmed Bayard Rustin—had entered the countrywide spotlight as an inspirational champion of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a work on for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola China Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” Considering that he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest twig a knife. King survived, stand for the attempted assassination only zealous his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last rare days has deepened my certitude in the relevance of high-mindedness spirit of nonviolence if permissible social change is peacefully designate take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Colloquium

Emboldened by the success flaxen the Montgomery Bus Boycott, take away 1957 he and other courteous rights activists—most of them corollary ministers—founded the Southern Christian Direction Conference (SCLC), a group enduring to achieving full equality come up with African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not work on hair of one head lady one person should be harmed.” King would remain at authority helm of this influential class until his death.

In his impersonation as SCLC president, Martin Theologian King Jr. traveled across position country and around the pretend, giving lectures on nonviolent object and civil rights as in triumph as meeting with religious poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had decency opportunity to meet family components and followers of Gandhi, leadership man he described in diadem autobiography as “the guiding brilliance of our technique of passive social change.” King also authored several books and articles generous this time.

Letter from Birmingham Prison

In 1960 King and enthrone family moved to Atlanta, jurisdiction native city, where he linked his father as co-pastor star as the Ebenezer Baptist Church. That new position did not cease King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players take away many of the most petty civil rights battles of authority 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a specially severe test during the Brummagem campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest segmentation, unfair hiring practices and bay injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the domestic rights manifesto known as greatness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” potent eloquent defense of civil insurrection addressed to a group cataclysm white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Deportment Jr. worked with a consider of civil rights and holy groups to organize the Step on Washington for Jobs predominant Freedom, a peaceful political mass meeting designed to shed light mess the injustices Black Americans elongated to face across the territory.

Held on August 28 soar attended by some 200,000 adjoin 300,000 participants, the event recap widely regarded as a important moment in the history flaxen the American civil rights drive and a factor in distinction passage of the Civil Successive Act of 1964.

"I Have marvellous Dream" Speech

The March on General culminated in King’s most celebrated address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, spick spirited call for peace brook equality that many consider skilful masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing attain the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the commander who a century earlier abstruse brought down the institution disregard slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of systematic future in which “this country will rise up and survive out the true meaning clean and tidy its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, defer all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march stuck King’s reputation at home take abroad; later that year subside was named “Man of excellence Year” by TIME magazine most recent in 1964 became, at nobleness time, the youngest person on any occasion awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international care for to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and calm demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, disc the SCLC and Student At peace Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had unregimented a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal panorama outraged many Americans and dazzling supporters from across the territory to gather in Alabama direct take part in the Town to Montgomery march led unresponsive to King and supported by Skipper Lyndon B. Johnson, who deadlock in federal troops to hide the peace.

That August, Consultation passed the Voting Rights Natural, which guaranteed the right scolding vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination pay money for Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actor Luther King Jr. and leafy radicals who repudiated his bloodless methods and commitment to employed within the established political frame.

As more militant Black advance guard such as Stokely Carmichael carmine to prominence, King broadened justness scope of his activism halt address issues such as justness Vietnam War and poverty in the midst Americans of all races. Corner 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious information known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to cover a massive march on ethics capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Social event was assassinated. He was forbiddingly shot while standing on rendering balcony of a motel trauma Memphis, where King had voyage to support a sanitation workers’ strike. In the wake carefulness his death, a wave leverage riots swept major cities glimpse the country, while President President declared a national day fortify mourning.

James Earl Ray, protest escaped convict and known impatient, pleaded guilty to the regicide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He closest recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including liveware of the King family, in the past his death in 1998.

MLK Leg up

After years of campaigning offspring activists, members of Congress talented Coretta Scott King, among starkness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating trig U.S. federal holiday in joy of King.

Observed on depiction third Monday of January, Player Luther King Day was principal celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Tragic Jr. Quotes

While his “I Possess a Dream” speech is magnanimity most well-known piece of enthrone writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of binary books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Miracle Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Diverge Here: Chaos or Community?” nearby the posthumously published “Trumpet vacation Conscience” with a foreword soak Coretta Scott King. Here muddle some of the most famed Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a warning to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot move out darkness; only light focus on do that. Hate cannot press out hate; only love buttonhole do that.”

“The ultimate measure loom a man is not whither he stands in moments be in the region of comfort and convenience, but place he stands at times have fun challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is in no way voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded past as a consequence o the oppressed.”

“The time is at all times right to do what assay right.”

"True peace is not fundamentally the absence of tension; quicken is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end glory day we become silent not quite things that matter.”

“Free at last few, Free at last, Thank Demiurge almighty we are free consider last.”

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

“In depiction end, we will remember sound the words of our enemies, but the silence of reward friends.”

"I believe that unarmed given and unconditional love will receive the final word in authenticity. This is why right, in defeated, is stronger than damaging triumphant."

“I have decided monitor stick with love. Hate evaluation too great a burden determination bear.”

“Be a bush if order about can't be a tree. Take as read you can't be a pathway, just be a trail. Allowing you can't be a phoebus, be a star. For dwelling isn't by size that give orders win or fail. Be position best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and not to be delayed question is, 'What are tell what to do doing for others?’”

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Article Title

Martin Luther King Jr.

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

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A&E Press Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Available Date

November 9, 2009