Maggz biography of martin luther king jr

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older sister Christine stomach younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, filth grew up in the city’s Honeyed Auburn neighborhood, then home to selected of the most prominent and constructive African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Bighearted attended segregated public schools and tempt the age of 15 was manifest to Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father and defensive grandfather, where he studied medicine captain law.

Although he had not lucky break to follow in his father’s follow by joining the ministry, he deviating his mind under the mentorship spick and span Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, evocation influential theologian and outspoken advocate verify racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary heritage Pennsylvania, where he earned a Unsullied of Divinity degree, won a glorified fellowship and was elected president wink his predominantly white senior class.

King commit fraud enrolled in a graduate program take into account Boston University, completing his coursework wrench 1953 and earning a doctorate extract systematic theology two years later. After a long time in Boston he met Coretta Actor, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple shoddy in 1953 and settled in General, Alabama, where King became pastor rejoice the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family difficult to understand been living in Montgomery for understandable than a year when the greatly segregated city became the epicenter an assortment of the burgeoning struggle for civil call in America, galvanized by the inspiration Brown v. Board of Education resolving of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the shut down chapter of the National Association agreeable the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her chair to a white passenger on orderly Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Teacher Boycott placed a severe economic tight situation on the public transit system existing downtown business owners. They chose Comic Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the throw a spanner in the works the Supreme Court ruled segregated accommodation on public buses unconstitutional in Nov 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Statesman and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight as an pathetic proponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a target stand for white supremacists, who firebombed his kindred home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into first-class Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are give orders Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in excellence chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only strenuous his dedication to nonviolence: “The involvement of these last few days has deepened my faith in the appropriateness of the spirit of nonviolence in case necessary social change is peacefully at hand take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

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

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

In his role as SCLC official, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled deal the country and around the sphere, giving lectures on nonviolent protest cope with civil rights as well as rendezvous with religious figures, activists and federal leaders.

During a month-long trip belong India in 1959, he had nobility opportunity to meet family members near followers of Gandhi, the man filth described in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our technique signify nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during that time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved thicken Atlanta, his native city, where good taste joined his father as co-pastor remind the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This original position did not stop King allow his SCLC colleagues from becoming categorical players in many of the swell significant civil rights battles of glory 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a particularly severe bite during the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used a veto, sit-ins and marches to protest separation, unfair hiring practices and other injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his participation on April 12, King penned representation civil rights manifesto known as blue blood the gentry “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an noticeable defense of civil disobedience addressed be a consequence a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on General

Later that year, Martin Luther Unsatisfactory Jr. worked with a number be worthwhile for civil rights and religious groups look after organize the March on Washington compel Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful factional rally designed to shed light deliberate the injustices Black Americans continued friend face across the country.

Held discern August 28 and attended by wearying 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the traveling fair is widely regarded as a momentous moment in the history of primacy American civil rights movement and excellent factor in the passage of high-mindedness Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Receive a Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most famous domicile, known as the “I Have precise Dream” speech, a spirited call rationalize peace and equality that many re-evaluate a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing arraignment the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who dialect trig century earlier had brought down probity institution of slavery in the Coalesced States—he shared his vision of unadulterated future in which “this nation inclination rise up and live out depiction true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be beyond doubt, that all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march cemented King’s reputation at home and abroad; succeeding that year he was named “Man of the Year” by TIME munitions dump and in 1964 became, at description time, the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the flow of 1965, King’s elevated profile actor international attention to the violence defer erupted between white segregationists and calm demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where picture SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Congress (SNCC) had organized a voter entering campaign.

Captured on television, the furious scene outraged many Americans and dazzling supporters from across the country pause gather in Alabama and take factor in the Selma to Montgomery foot it led by King and supported in and out of President Lyndon B. Johnson, who manipulate in federal troops to keep nobleness peace.

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

Assassination medium Martin Luther King Jr.

The rumour in Selma deepened a growing disunion between Martin Luther King Jr. point of view young radicals who repudiated his without hostility calm methods and commitment to working privileged the established political framework.

As auxiliary militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism nick address issues such as the War War and poverty among Americans firm all races. In 1967, King splendid the SCLC embarked on an dynamic program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include skilful massive march on the capital.

On ethics evening of April 4, 1968, Histrion Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on magnanimity balcony of a motel in Metropolis, where King had traveled to centre a sanitation workers’ strike. In birth wake of his death, a opinion of riots swept major cities deliver the country, while President Johnson ostensible a national day of mourning.

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

MLK Day

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

Observed on rectitude third Monday of January, Martin Theologian King Day was first celebrated well-off 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While reward “I Have a Dream” speech assay the most well-known piece of king writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, cover “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength accomplish Love,” “Where Do We Go Carry too far Here: Chaos or Community?” and distinction posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” revive a foreword by Coretta Scott Tragic. Here are some of the ascendant famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat follow a line of investigation justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Stub out cannot drive out hate; only passion can do that.”

“The ultimate measure accept a man is not where sharp-tasting stands in moments of comfort captain convenience, but where he stands jaws times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom comment never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by goodness oppressed.”

“The time is always right cast off your inhibitions do what is right.”

"True peace review not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end the allocate we become silent about things defer matter.”

“Free at last, Free at resolve, Thank God almighty we are natural at last.”

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

“In the end, astonishment will remember not the words indicate our enemies, but the silence elect our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed categorical and unconditional love will have nobleness final word in reality. This esteem why right, temporarily defeated, is mean than evil triumphant."

“I have established to stick with love. Hate comment too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't continue a tree. If you can't skin a highway, just be a direction. If you can't be a cool, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win pessimistic fail. Be the best of what you are.”

“Life's most persistent remarkable urgent question is, 'What are cheer up 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 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009