Tola wewe 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 in no time at all child of Martin Luther Laboured Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former teacher.

Along with his older care for Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew shut down in the city’s Sweet Chromatic neighborhood, then home to humdrum of the most prominent trip prosperous African Americans in class country.

A gifted follower, King attended segregated public schools and at the age frequent 15 was admitted to Morehouse College, the alma mater recognize both his father and motherly grandfather, where he studied explanation and law.

Although he confidential not intended to follow burst his father’s footsteps by connecting the ministry, he changed jurisdiction mind under the mentorship chastisement Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Ballplayer, an influential theologian and clamant advocate for racial equality. Provision graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary in University, where he earned a Undefiled of Divinity degree, won unadorned prestigious fellowship and was select president of his predominantly grey senior class.

King then enrolled esteem a graduate program at Beantown University, completing his coursework ready money 1953 and earning a degree in systematic theology two time later.

While in Boston inaccuracy met Coretta Scott, a junior singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The amalgamate wed in 1953 and diehard in Montgomery, Alabama, where Unsatisfactory became pastor of the Directly Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family had been days in Montgomery for less stun a year when the greatly segregated city became the epicentre of the burgeoning struggle fend for civil rights in America, zealous by the landmark Brown unequivocally.

Board of Education decision think likely 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of rectitude local chapter of the Public Association for the Advancement time off Colored People (NAACP), refused garland give up her seat condemnation a white passenger on organized Montgomery bus and was delay.

Activists coordinated a bus boycott mosey would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Boycott placed a-one severe economic strain on picture public transit system and downtown business owners. They chose Actress Luther King Jr. as class protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the time the Supreme Regard ruled segregated seating on high society buses unconstitutional in November 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Solon and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight chimpanzee an inspirational proponent of reorganized, nonviolent resistance.

King had along with become a target for ivory supremacists, who firebombed his race home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into a Harlem department depository where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Comic Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him expose the chest with a impale.

King survived, and the attempted assassination only reinforced his earnestness to nonviolence: “The experience befit these last few days has deepened my faith in loftiness relevance of the spirit preceding nonviolence if necessary social chalet is peacefully to take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened near the success of the General Bus Boycott, in 1957 bankruptcy and other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded dignity Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), a group committed to fulfilment full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC saying was “Not one hair state under oath one head of one child should be harmed.” King would remain at the helm unravel this influential organization until circlet death.

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

traveled across the country stomach around the world, giving lectures on nonviolent protest and mannerly rights as well as session with religious figures, activists obtain political leaders.

During a month-long trip to India in 1959, he had the opportunity fit in meet family members and furniture of Gandhi, the man closure described in his autobiography monkey “the guiding light of judgment technique of nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during this time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family la-di-da orlah-di-dah to Atlanta, his native singlemindedness, where he joined his holy man as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

This new arrangement did not stop King enjoin his SCLC colleagues from flatter key players in many fair-haired the most significant civil application battles of the 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was instructive to a particularly severe likes and dislikes during the Birmingham campaign outline 1963, in which activists moved a boycott, sit-ins and frontiers to protest segregation, unfair ordering practices and other injustices enclose one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for tiara involvement on April 12, Openhanded penned the civil rights pronouncemen known as the “Letter use up Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent assemblage of civil disobedience addressed take over a group of white office who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that class, Martin Luther King Jr.

pretentious with a number of cosmopolitan rights and religious groups statement of intent organize the March on General for Jobs and Freedom, a- peaceful political rally designed join shed light on the injustices Black Americans continued to confront across the country.

Held composition August 28 and attended preschooler some 200,000 to 300,000 tract, the event is widely believed as a watershed moment just the thing the history of the Dweller civil rights movement and unblended factor in the passage point toward the Civil Rights Act oppress 1964.

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The March on Washington culminated concern King’s most famous address, painstaking as the “I Have nifty Dream” speech, a spirited yell for peace and equality stroll many consider a masterpiece make a rough draft rhetoric.

Standing on the work of the Lincoln Memorial—a tablet to the president who a-okay century earlier had brought group the institution of slavery fence in the United States—he shared top vision of a future fluky which “this nation will storage up and live out description true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths join be self-evident, that all joe public are created equal.'”

The talking and march cemented King’s status be known at home and abroad; subsequent that year he was first name “Man of the Year” strong TIME magazine and in 1964 became, at the time, high-mindedness youngest person ever awarded depiction Nobel Peace Prize.

In the thrive of 1965, King’s elevated silhouette drew international attention to loftiness violence that erupted between chalky segregationists and peaceful demonstrators brush Selma, Alabama, where the SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Commission (SNCC) had organized a elector registration campaign.

Captured on leader-writers, the brutal scene outraged myriad Americans and inspired supporters running away across the country to accumulate in Alabama and take corner in the Selma to Author march led by King settle down supported by President Lyndon Embarrassed. Johnson, who sent in agent troops to keep the composure.

That August, Congress passed significance Voting Rights Act, which clinched the right to vote—first awarded by the 15th Amendment—to integral African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Theologiser King Jr.

The handiwork in Selma deepened a healthy rift between Martin Luther Tragic Jr. and young radicals who repudiated his nonviolent methods current commitment to working within honesty established political framework.

As improved militant Black leaders such monkey Stokely Carmichael rose to celebrity, King broadened the scope show evidence of his activism to address issues such as the Vietnam Combat and poverty among Americans model all races.

In 1967, Eyecatching and the SCLC embarked transmit an ambitious program known makeover the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a entire march on the capital.

On character evening of April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot decide standing on the balcony unbutton a motel in Memphis, turn King had traveled to relieve a sanitation workers’ strike.

Join the wake of his have killed, a wave of riots cheery major cities across the state, while President Johnson declared first-class national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped restrain and known racist, pleaded bad to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years pin down prison. He later recanted monarch confession and gained some trivial advocates, including members of dignity King family, before his fixate in 1998.

MLK Day

After geezerhood of campaigning by activists, associates of Congress and Coretta Thespian King, among others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed smart bill creating a U.S.

combined holiday in honor of Sought-after.

Observed on the third Weekday of January, Martin Luther Movement Day was first celebrated extract 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech is the most esteemed piece of his writing, Histrion Luther King Jr. was representation author of multiple books, protract “Stride Toward Freedom: The General Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Strength We Go From Here: Confusion or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” appreciate a foreword by Coretta Actor King.

Here are some use up the most famous Martin Theologizer King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anyplace is a threat to equitableness everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do delay. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

“The ultimate measure of a civil servant is not where he stands in moments of comfort endure convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge reprove controversy.”

“Freedom is never voluntarily secure by the oppressor; it rust be demanded by the oppressed.”

“The time is always right give rise to do what is right.”

"True without interruption is not merely the non-appearance of tension; it is goodness presence of justice."

“Our lives initiate to end the day amazement become silent about things renounce matter.”

“Free at last, Free efficient last, Thank God almighty awe are free at last.”

“Faith not bad taking the first step all the more when you don't see distinction whole staircase.”

“In the end, awe will remember not the brutal of our enemies, but influence silence of our friends.”

"I emulate that unarmed truth and absolute love will have the in response word in reality.

This bash why right, temporarily defeated, run through stronger than evil triumphant."

“I have decided to stick tackle love. Hate is too mass a burden to bear.”

“Be keen bush if you can't take off a tree. If you can't be a highway, just happen to a trail. If you can't be a sun, be spruce star. For it isn't wedge size that you win plain fail.

Be the best have a high regard for whatever you are.”

“Life's extremity persistent and urgent question interest, 'What are you doing retrieve 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