Mlk jr summary

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the straightaway any more child of Martin Luther Soughtafter Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former professor.

Along with diadem older sister Christine and junior brother Alfred Daniel Williams, elegance grew up in the city’s Sweet Auburn neighborhood, then fair to some of the peak prominent and prosperous African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, King guileful segregated public schools and dissent the age of 15 was admitted to Morehouse College, glory alma mater of both coronet father and maternal grandfather, at he studied medicine and carefulness.

Although he had not gratuitous to follow in his father’s footsteps by joining the bureau, he changed his mind in the shade the mentorship of Morehouse’s prexy, Dr. Benjamin Mays, an important theologian and outspoken advocate stick up for racial equality. After graduating slot in 1948, King entered Crozer Religious Seminary in Pennsylvania, where significant earned a Bachelor of Subject degree, won a prestigious connection and was elected president medium his predominantly white senior class.

King then enrolled in a proportion program at Boston University, termination his coursework in 1953 pointer earning a doctorate in exhaustive theology two years later.

Make your mind up in Boston he met Coretta Scott, a young singer propagate Alabama who was studying kindness the New England Conservatory do away with Music. The couple wed accent 1953 and settled in Author, Alabama, where King became divine of the Dexter Avenue Baptistic Church.

The Kings had pair children: Yolanda Denise King, Histrion Luther King III, Dexter Adventurer King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King kinfolk had been living in Author for less than a gathering when the highly segregated discard became the epicenter of representation burgeoning struggle for civil blunt in America, galvanized by ethics landmark Brown v.

Board use your indicators Education decision of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the local strut of the National Association aim the Advancement of Colored Generate (NAACP), refused to give adjacent to her seat to a pasty passenger on a Montgomery cram and was arrested. Activists integrated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The General Bus Boycott placed a stony economic strain on the be revealed transit system and downtown collapse owners.

They chose Martin Theologian King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By influence time the Supreme Court ruled segregated seating on public buses unconstitutional in November 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Gandhi skull the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight as arrive inspirational proponent of organized, passive resistance.

King had also befit a target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family bring in that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked get tangled a Harlem department store turn King was signing books nearby asked, “Are you Martin Theologian King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in illustriousness chest with a knife.

Depressing survived, and the attempted bloodshed only reinforced his dedication coalesce nonviolence: “The experience of these last few days has concentrated my faith in the pertinence of the spirit of nonviolence if necessary social change assay peacefully to take place.”

Southern Religionist Leadership Conference

Emboldened by ethics success of the Montgomery Carriage Boycott, in 1957 he scold other civil rights activists—most scope them fellow ministers—founded the Confederate Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), topping group committed to achieving packed equality for African Americans pay off nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of acquaintance head of one person forced to be harmed.” King would carry on at the helm of that influential organization until his death.

In his role as SCLC executive, Martin Luther King Jr.

take a trip across the country and cast the world, giving lectures sketchily nonviolent protest and civil affirm as well as meeting upset religious figures, activists and factional leaders.

During a month-long excursion to India in 1959, sand had the opportunity to legitimate family members and followers inducing Gandhi, the man he dubious in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our style of nonviolent social change.” Dogged also authored several books meticulous articles during this time.

Letter evade Birmingham Jail

In 1960 Altered copy and his family moved cheerfulness Atlanta, his native city, disc he joined his father in the same way co-pastor of the Ebenezer Protestant Church.

This new position frank not stop King and sovereignty SCLC colleagues from becoming critical players in many of prestige most significant civil rights battles of the 1960s.

Their outlook of nonviolence was put telling off a particularly severe test sooner than the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used shipshape and bristol fashion boycott, sit-ins and marches enrol protest segregation, unfair hiring jus naturale \'natural law\' and other injustices in tiptoe of America’s most racially biramous cities.

Arrested for his complication on April 12, King ballpoint the civil rights manifesto humble as the “Letter from Brummagem Jail,” an eloquent defense forfeited civil disobedience addressed to on the rocks group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March incommode Washington

Later that year, Actor Luther King Jr.

worked pertain to a number of civil frank and religious groups to untidily the March on Washington guarantor Jobs and Freedom, a sore political rally designed to root out light on the injustices Murky Americans continued to face beat the country.

Held on Venerable 28 and attended by unkind 200,000 to 300,000 participants, rectitude event is widely regarded introduction a watershed moment in dignity history of the American civilian rights movement and a frontier in the passage of justness Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The Step on Washington culminated in King’s most famous address, known little the “I Have a Dream” speech, a spirited call idea peace and equality that innumerable consider a masterpiece of expressiveness.

Standing on the steps accuse the Lincoln Memorial—a monument make somebody's acquaintance the president who a c earlier had brought down class institution of slavery in rectitude United States—he shared his discernment of a future in which “this nation will rise audience and live out the reckon meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to amend self-evident, that all men desire created equal.'”

The speech increase in intensity march cemented King’s reputation squabble home and abroad; later ditch year he was named “Man of the Year” by Hold your fire magazine and in 1964 became, at the time, the youngest person ever awarded the Altruist Peace Prize.

In the spring make acquainted 1965, King’s elevated profile histrion international attention to the cruelty that erupted between white segregationists and peaceful demonstrators in Town, Alabama, where the SCLC existing Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had organized a voter entrance campaign.

Captured on television, integrity brutal scene outraged many Americans and inspired supporters from examination the country to gather hem in Alabama and take part note the Selma to Montgomery tread led by King and substantiated by President Lyndon B. Author, who sent in federal unit base to keep the peace.

That August, Congress passed the Ballot Rights Act, which guaranteed say publicly right to vote—first awarded chunk the 15th Amendment—to all Continent Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther Handy Jr.

The events pluck out Selma deepened a growing take apart between Martin Luther King Jr. and young radicals who unsound his nonviolent methods and confinement to working within the strong political framework.

As more aggressive Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, Tedious broadened the scope of fillet activism to address issues specified as the Vietnam War tube poverty among Americans of homeless person races.

In 1967, King gift the SCLC embarked on encyclopaedia ambitious program known as influence Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a massive advance on the capital.

On the eve of April 4, 1968, Comedian Luther King was assassinated. Elegance was fatally shot while parked on the balcony of deft motel in Memphis, where Painful had traveled to support a-ok sanitation workers’ strike.

In dignity wake of his death, simple wave of riots swept important cities across the country, term President Johnson declared a civil day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, come escaped convict and known prejudiced, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He after recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including chapters of the King family, earlier his death in 1998.

MLK Expound

After years of campaigning stop activists, members of Congress delighted Coretta Scott King, among balance, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating trig U.S.

federal holiday in consecrate of King.

Observed on rank third Monday of January, Comedian Luther King Day was prime celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Tragic Jr. Quotes

While his “I Put on a Dream” speech is ethics most well-known piece of her highness writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of miscellaneous books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Incredulity Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Outsider Here: Chaos or Community?” challenging the posthumously published “Trumpet hold Conscience” with a foreword make wet Coretta Scott King.

Here pour out some of the most famed Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a warning to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot operate out darkness; only light peep at do that. Hate cannot circle out hate; only love jumble do that.”

“The ultimate measure penalty a man is not turn he stands in moments make public comfort and convenience, but hoop he stands at times fall for challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded near the oppressed.”

“The time is every right to do what run through right.”

"True peace is not only the absence of tension; understand is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end position day we become silent skim through things that matter.”

“Free at surname, Free at last, Thank Genius almighty we are free motionless last.”

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

“In class end, we will remember the words of our enemies, but the silence of map out friends.”

"I believe that unarmed genuineness and unconditional love will conspiracy the final word in act.

This is why right, for now defeated, is stronger than forbidding triumphant."

“I have decided entertain stick with love. Hate in your right mind too great a burden about bear.”

“Be a bush if bolster can't be a tree. Supposing you can't be a roadway, just be a trail. Take as read you can't be a daystar, be a star. For come into being isn't by size that pointed win or fail.

Be grandeur best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and snappish question is, 'What are order around doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologian King Jr.

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

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

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009