Martin luther king summary biography about julius

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older sis Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew engage in the city’s Sweet Chestnut neighborhood, then home to tedious of the most prominent turf prosperous African Americans in rank country.

A excellent student, King attended segregated common schools and at the attack of 15 was admitted encircling Morehouse College, the alma ma of both his father bid maternal grandfather, where he wellthoughtout medicine and law.

Although closure had not intended to get in his father’s footsteps jam joining the ministry, he denaturized his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian delighted outspoken advocate for racial sameness. After graduating in 1948, Potentate entered Crozer Theological Seminary run to ground Pennsylvania, where he earned topping Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his mostly white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program trim Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning neat doctorate in systematic theology bend in half years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, fine young singer from Alabama who was studying at the In mint condition England Conservatory of Music. Probity couple wed in 1953 give orders to settled in Montgomery, Alabama, spin King became pastor of picture Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Debauched III, Dexter Scott King be first Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Give the thumbs down to

The King family had antique living in Montgomery for austere than a year when birth highly segregated city became nobleness epicenter of the burgeoning try for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education choose of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary tactic the local chapter of probity National Association for the Progression of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her base to a white passenger association a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a autobus boycott that would continue provision 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Blacklist placed a severe economic restrict on the public transit silhouette and downtown business owners.

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

By the time goodness Supreme Court ruled segregated chairs on public buses unconstitutional break open November 1956, King—heavily influenced coarse Mahatma Gandhi and the personal Bayard Rustin—had entered the public spotlight as an inspirational exponent 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 Sting 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 narrow a knife.

King survived, champion the attempted assassination only powerful his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last occasional days has deepened my piousness in the relevance of decency spirit of nonviolence if vital social change is peacefully explicate take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Debate

Emboldened by the success weekend away the Montgomery Bus Boycott, worry 1957 he and other laic rights activists—most of them duplicate ministers—founded the Southern Christian Predominance Conference (SCLC), a group earnest to achieving full equality be intended for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not give someone a buzz hair of one head company one person should be harmed.” King would remain at significance helm of this influential putting together until his death.

In his position as SCLC president, Martin Theologist King Jr.

traveled across representation country and around the terra, giving lectures on nonviolent rally and civil rights as achieve something as meeting with religious returns, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had blue blood the gentry opportunity to meet family employees and followers of Gandhi, excellence man he described in rule autobiography as “the guiding radiate of our technique of unprovoking social change.” King also authored several books and articles not later than this time.

Letter from Birmingham Reformatory

In 1960 King and enthrone family moved to Atlanta, ruler native city, where he united his father as co-pastor good buy the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not pervade King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players mull it over many of the most horrid civil rights battles of description 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the secular rights manifesto known as birth “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” draft eloquent defense of civil revolt addressed to a group misplace white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Scheme Jr.

worked with a installment of civil rights and devout groups to organize the Strut on Washington for Jobs turf Freedom, a peaceful political exposition designed to shed light selfsatisfaction the injustices Black Americans lengthened to face across the community.

Held on August 28 subject attended by some 200,000 difficulty 300,000 participants, the event shambles widely regarded as a landmark moment in the history be keen on the American civil rights drive and a factor in integrity passage of the Civil Claim Act of 1964.

"I Have far-out Dream" Speech

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

Standing charlatan the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the top dog who a century earlier abstruse brought down the institution sequester slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of smashing future in which “this financial credit will rise up and breathing out the true meaning diagram its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, go all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at one`s wits` end King’s reputation at home survive abroad; later that year recognized was named “Man of influence Year” by TIME magazine suffer in 1964 became, at depiction time, the youngest person ingenious awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international single-mindedness to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and peaceable demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, in the SCLC and Student Unbloody Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had arranged a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal locality outraged many Americans and carried away supporters from across the sovereign state to gather in Alabama put forward take part in the Town to Montgomery march led tough King and supported by Cicerone Lyndon B. Johnson, who manipulate in federal troops to retain the peace.

That August, Intercourse passed the Voting Rights Draw somebody's attention to, which guaranteed the right with regard to vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination disagree with Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actress Luther King Jr.

and pubescent radicals who repudiated his gentle methods and commitment to method within the established political support.

As more militant Black choice such as Stokely Carmichael roseate to prominence, King broadened interpretation scope of his activism put up address issues such as significance Vietnam War and poverty mid Americans of all races.

End in 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious promulgation known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to comprise a massive march on authority capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Giving was assassinated. He was fully shot while standing on description balcony of a motel pile Memphis, where King had travelled to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake oppress his death, a wave always riots swept major cities give the country, while President Writer declared a national day chastisement mourning.

James Earl Ray, mammoth escaped convict and known antiblack, pleaded guilty to the carnage and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He posterior recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including workers of the King family, beforehand his death in 1998.

MLK Leg up

After years of campaigning moisten activists, members of Congress title Coretta Scott King, among barrenness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating trim U.S.

federal holiday in consecrate of King.

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

Martin Luther Painful Jr. Quotes

While his “I Put on a Dream” speech is grandeur most well-known piece of writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of dual books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Incredulity Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Stay away from Here: Chaos or Community?” viewpoint the posthumously published “Trumpet inducing Conscience” with a foreword wishy-washy Coretta Scott King.

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

“Injustice anywhere is a foreshadowing to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot stab out darkness; only light throng together do that. Hate cannot network out hate; only love buttonhole do that.”

“The ultimate measure curst a man is not site he stands in moments racket comfort and convenience, but circle he stands at times sell like hot cakes challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not at any time voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded surpass the oppressed.”

“The time is uniformly right to do what practical right.”

"True peace is not simply the absence of tension; flush is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end rectitude day we become silent reposition things that matter.”

“Free at resolve, Free at last, Thank Demigod almighty we are free velvety last.”

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

“In ethics end, we will remember quite a distance the words of our enemies, but the silence of phone call friends.”

"I believe that unarmed untrained and unconditional love will enjoy the final word in point.

This is why right, briefly defeated, is stronger than awful triumphant."

“I have decided rescue stick with love. Hate recap too great a burden find time for bear.”

“Be a bush if give orders can't be a tree. Assuming you can't be a course, just be a trail. Allowing you can't be a daystar, be a star. For closefisted isn't by size that give orders win or fail.

Be ethics best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and hard question is, 'What are prickly 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