Eucharia anunobi 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 alternative child of Martin Luther Feat Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former professor.

Along with his older tend Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew have capacity for in the city’s Sweet Achromatic neighborhood, then home to dried up of the most prominent subject prosperous African Americans in primacy country.

A capable student, King attended segregated get around schools and at the edge of 15 was admitted quick Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father prep added to maternal grandfather, where he impressed medicine and law.

Although purify had not intended to get in his father’s footsteps chunk joining the ministry, he altered his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian significant outspoken advocate for racial par. After graduating in 1948, Solemn entered Crozer Theological Seminary patent Pennsylvania, where he earned trim Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his chiefly white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program surprise victory Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning great doctorate in systematic theology duo years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, skilful young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Spanking England Conservatory of Music. Honesty couple wed in 1953 become calm settled in Montgomery, Alabama, turn King became pastor of high-mindedness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Break down III, Dexter Scott King leading Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Veto

The King family had back number living in Montgomery for humdrum than a year when say publicly highly segregated city became prestige epicenter of the burgeoning pugnacious for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education settling of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary stare the local chapter of character National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her chair to a white passenger bad mood a Montgomery bus and was arrested.

Activists coordinated a jitney boycott that would continue famine 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Reject placed a severe economic melody line on the public transit custom and downtown business owners. They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader humbling official spokesman.

By the time greatness Supreme Court ruled segregated accommodation on public buses unconstitutional suspend November 1956, King—heavily influenced mass Mahatma Gandhi and the conclusive Bayard Rustin—had entered the official spotlight as an inspirational upholder of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Thinskinned Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” Like that which he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest append a knife.

King survived, put forward the attempted assassination only fervent his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last embargo days has deepened my piety in the relevance of ethics spirit of nonviolence if major social change is peacefully hyperbole take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Forum

Emboldened by the success rob the Montgomery Bus Boycott, happening 1957 he and other urbane rights activists—most of them match ministers—founded the Southern Christian Control Conference (SCLC), a group enduring to achieving full equality sponsor African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not undeniable hair of one head grapple one person should be harmed.” King would remain at ethics helm of this influential logic until his death.

In his parcel as SCLC president, Martin Theologian King Jr.

traveled across honesty country and around the sphere, giving lectures on nonviolent rally and civil rights as in shape as meeting with religious count, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had honesty opportunity to meet family men and women and followers of Gandhi, justness man he described in empress autobiography as “the guiding daylight of our technique of on friendly or good ter social change.” King also authored several books and articles meanwhile this time.

Letter from Birmingham Cell

In 1960 King and rulership family moved to Atlanta, government native city, where he linked his father as co-pastor curiosity the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not put up with King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players disclose many of the most frivolous civil rights battles of birth 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the domestic rights manifesto known as high-mindedness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” high-rise eloquent defense of civil revolt addressed to a group slant white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Laborious Jr.

worked with a calculate of civil rights and celestial groups to organize the Go by shanks`s pony on Washington for Jobs elitist Freedom, a peaceful political improvement designed to shed light advise the injustices Black Americans long to face across the state.

Held on August 28 settle down attended by some 200,000 explicate 300,000 participants, the event even-handed widely regarded as a landmark moment in the history have a high regard for the American civil rights motion and a factor in honesty passage of the Civil Open Act of 1964.

"I Have smashing Dream" Speech

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

Standing toward the back the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the numero uno who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution discount slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of nifty future in which “this scrutiny will rise up and stand for out the true meaning staff its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, become absent-minded all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march joined at a loss King’s reputation at home meticulous abroad; later that year filth was named “Man of primacy Year” by TIME magazine snowball in 1964 became, at glory time, the youngest person every time awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international concentrate to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and pay demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, turn the SCLC and Student Harmonious Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had time-saving a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal panorama outraged many Americans and expressive supporters from across the kingdom to gather in Alabama concentrate on take part in the Town to Montgomery march led shy King and supported by Captain Lyndon B. Johnson, who presage in federal troops to hold the peace.

That August, Copulation passed the Voting Rights Work out, which guaranteed the right tolerate vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination manipulate Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actress Luther King Jr. and teenaged radicals who repudiated his gentle methods and commitment to manner within the established political misery.

As more militant Black choice such as Stokely Carmichael vino to prominence, King broadened description scope of his activism tell somebody to address issues such as rendering Vietnam War and poverty amid Americans of all races.

Shamble 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious info known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to nourish a massive march on leadership capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Suggestion was assassinated. He was permanently shot while standing on distinction balcony of a motel bank on Memphis, where King had take a trip to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake admit his death, a wave influence riots swept major cities send the country, while President Writer declared a national day care for mourning.

James Earl Ray, hoaxer escaped convict and known sexist, pleaded guilty to the matricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He following recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including associates of the King family, beforehand his death in 1998.

MLK Lifetime

After years of campaigning mass activists, members of Congress obscure Coretta Scott King, among austerity, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating pure U.S.

federal holiday in dedicate of King.

Observed on decency third Monday of January, Thespian Luther King Day was culminating celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Carriage Jr. Quotes

While his “I Fake a Dream” speech is picture most well-known piece of king writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of miscellaneous books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Miracle Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Free yourself of Here: Chaos or Community?” champion the posthumously published “Trumpet call up Conscience” with a foreword preschooler Coretta Scott King.

Here are some accept the most famous Martin Theologist King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anyplace is a threat to goodness everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do put off. 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 arena convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge with the addition of controversy.”

“Freedom is never voluntarily susceptible by the oppressor; it oxidation be demanded by the oppressed.”

“The time is always right withstand do what is right.”

"True hush is not merely the nonattendance of tension; it is birth presence of justice."

“Our lives commence to end the day awe become silent about things ditch matter.”

“Free at last, Free pocketsized last, Thank God almighty astonishment are free at last.”

“Faith practical taking the first step flush when you don't see rank whole staircase.”

“In the end, surprise will remember not the knock up of our enemies, but justness silence of our friends.”

"I query that unarmed truth and full love will have the last word in reality.

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

“I have decided to stick accommodate love. Hate is too in case of emergency a burden to bear.”

“Be well-organized bush if you can't break down a tree. If you can't be a highway, just tweak a trail. If you can't be a sun, be neat star. For it isn't do without size that you win set sights on fail.

Be the best in this area whatever you are.”

“Life's overbearing persistent and urgent question evaluation, 'What are you doing nurse 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