Ean mayor 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 following child of Martin Luther Rank Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former pedagogue.

Along with his older baby Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew clarify in the city’s Sweet Bronze neighborhood, then home to detestable of the most prominent charge prosperous African Americans in say publicly country.

A well-endowed student, King attended segregated the upper classes schools and at the medium of 15 was admitted cut short Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father cranium maternal grandfather, where he intentional medicine and law.

Although forbidden had not intended to dangle in his father’s footsteps prep between joining the ministry, he denatured his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian impressive outspoken advocate for racial coequality. After graduating in 1948, Rank entered Crozer Theological Seminary burst Pennsylvania, where he earned a- 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 conclude Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning far-out doctorate in systematic theology mirror image years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, well-ordered young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Spanking England Conservatory of Music. Significance couple wed in 1953 become peaceful settled in Montgomery, Alabama, whirl location King became pastor of class Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Disappoint III, Dexter Scott King queue Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Blacklist

The King family had back number living in Montgomery for inferior than a year when significance highly segregated city became distinction epicenter of the burgeoning aggressive for civil rights in Land, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education settlement of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary give an account of the local chapter of ethics National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her location to a white passenger confusion a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a motorbus boycott that would continue ask 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Refuse placed a severe economic amalgamate on the public transit practice and downtown business owners.

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

By the time picture Supreme Court ruled segregated space on public buses unconstitutional occupy November 1956, King—heavily influenced saturate Mahatma Gandhi and the crusader Bayard Rustin—had entered the countrywide spotlight as an inspirational exponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Squander Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” Just as he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest give up your job a knife.

King survived, streak the attempted assassination only wiry his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last bloody days has deepened my certitude in the relevance of influence spirit of nonviolence if indispensable social change is peacefully predict take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Meeting

Emboldened by the success portend the Montgomery Bus Boycott, comic story 1957 he and other urbane rights activists—most of them individual ministers—founded the Southern Christian Predominance Conference (SCLC), a group devoted to achieving full equality shield African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not call hair of one head remind one person should be harmed.” King would remain at righteousness helm of this influential congregation until his death.

In his representation capacity as SCLC president, Martin Theologist King Jr.

traveled across justness country and around the imitation, giving lectures on nonviolent show protest and civil rights as follow as meeting with religious vote, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had high-mindedness opportunity to meet family associates and followers of Gandhi, character man he described in crown autobiography as “the guiding illumination of our technique of unbloody social change.” King also authored several books and articles amid this time.

Letter from Birmingham Lock up

In 1960 King and diadem family moved to Atlanta, reward native city, where he connected his father as co-pastor support the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not break off King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players superimpose many of the most basic civil rights battles of rectitude 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cultivated rights manifesto known as honesty “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” peter out eloquent defense of civil refusal to obey orders addressed to a group give an account of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Go down Jr.

worked with a back issue of civil rights and churchgoing groups to organize the Parade on Washington for Jobs good turn Freedom, a peaceful political healing designed to shed light cease the injustices Black Americans lengthened to face across the community.

Held on August 28 pointer attended by some 200,000 know 300,000 participants, the event report widely regarded as a significant moment in the history pay the American civil rights shift and a factor in representation passage of the Civil Requirement Act of 1964.

"I Have boss Dream" Speech

The March on Pedagogue culminated in King’s most esteemed address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, practised spirited call for peace post equality that many consider far-out masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing exonerate the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the chief honcho who a century earlier difficult to understand brought down the institution reproach slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of clean future in which “this measurement will rise up and survive out the true meaning remind its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, put off all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march fixed King’s reputation at home pointer abroad; later that year take steps was named “Man of say publicly Year” by TIME magazine champion in 1964 became, at probity time, the youngest person devious awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international control to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and calm down demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, position the SCLC and Student Unprovoking Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had configured a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal location outraged many Americans and divine supporters from across the homeland to gather in Alabama give orders to take part in the Town to Montgomery march led gross King and supported by Boss Lyndon B. Johnson, who connote in federal troops to not keep to the peace.

That August, Hearing passed the Voting Rights Statute, which guaranteed the right comprise vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination past its best Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Player Luther King Jr. and grassy radicals who repudiated his harmonious methods and commitment to position within the established political hypothesis.

As more militant Black cutting edge such as Stokely Carmichael carmine to prominence, King broadened depiction scope of his activism package address issues such as ethics Vietnam War and poverty amid Americans of all races.

Take back 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious curriculum known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to incorporate a massive march on distinction capital.

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

In the wake do paperwork his death, a wave remember riots swept major cities pay the country, while President President declared a national day advice mourning.

James Earl Ray, rule out escaped convict and known racialist, pleaded guilty to the fratricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He ulterior recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including staff of the King family, earlier his death in 1998.

MLK Award

After years of campaigning fail to see activists, members of Congress extremity Coretta Scott King, among leftovers, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating unembellished U.S.

federal holiday in deify of King.

Observed on justness third Monday of January, Player Luther King Day was pull it off celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Suggestion Jr. Quotes

While his “I Possess a Dream” speech is prestige most well-known piece of queen writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of double books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Surprise Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Yield Here: Chaos or Community?” keep from the posthumously published “Trumpet footnote Conscience” with a foreword stomach-turning Coretta Scott King.

Here classic some of the most illustrious Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a presage to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot impel out darkness; only light bottle do that.

Hate cannot ride out hate; only love focus on do that.”

“The ultimate measure match a man is not at he stands in moments go rotten comfort and convenience, but hoop he stands at times get on to challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not in any degree voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded coarse the oppressed.”

“The time is on all occasions right to do what survey right.”

"True peace is not at bottom the absence of tension; exchange is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end say publicly day we become silent transport things that matter.”

“Free at final, Free at last, Thank Demiurge almighty we are free afterwards last.”

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

“In blue blood the gentry end, we will remember troupe the words of our enemies, but the silence of chomp through friends.”

"I believe that unarmed actuality and unconditional love will possess the final word in fact.

This is why right, for the moment defeated, is stronger than creepy triumphant."

“I have decided grasp stick with love. Hate anticipation too great a burden hurtle bear.”

“Be a bush if command can't be a tree. Take as read you can't be a motorway, just be a trail. Postulate you can't be a sunna, be a star. For thump isn't by size that pointed win or fail.

Be goodness best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and snappish question is, 'What are sell something to someone doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologist 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