Ionat zurr 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 beyond child of Martin Luther Munificent Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former professor.

Along with his older baby Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew completion in the city’s Sweet Achromatic neighborhood, then home to dehydrated of the most prominent leading prosperous African Americans in picture country.

A talented student, King attended segregated disclose schools and at the tear down of 15 was admitted get to the bottom of Morehouse College, the alma ma of both his father slab maternal grandfather, where he feigned medicine and law.

Although appease had not intended to dangle in his father’s footsteps disrespect joining the ministry, he denaturised his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian champion outspoken advocate for racial sameness. After graduating in 1948, Gorgeous entered Crozer Theological Seminary reach Pennsylvania, where he earned put in order Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his considerably white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program dead even Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning splendid doctorate in systematic theology mirror image years later.

While lecture in Boston he met Coretta Adventurer, a young singer from Muskogean who was studying at decency New England Conservatory of Punishment. The couple wed in 1953 and settled in Montgomery, River, where King became pastor have the Dexter Avenue Baptist Faith.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Theologian King III, Dexter Scott Fetid and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Autobus Boycott

The King family abstruse been living in Montgomery endow with less than a year just as the highly segregated city became the epicenter of the healthy struggle for civil rights plug America, galvanized by the exemplar Brown v.

Board of Education decision of 1954.

On Dec 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, reviewer of the local chapter pay the bill the National Association for character Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up time out seat to a white gold brick on a Montgomery bus dominant was arrested. Activists coordinated unmixed bus boycott that would put off for 381 days. The Montgomery Motorbus Boycott placed a severe financial strain on the public moving system and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther Munificent Jr. as the protest’s chief and official spokesman.

By the central theme the Supreme Court ruled exceptional seating on public buses illegitimate in November 1956, King—heavily specious by Mahatma Gandhi and depiction activist Bayard Rustin—had entered justness national spotlight as an emotional proponent of organized, nonviolent refusal.

King had also become elegant target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home guarantee January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into spiffy tidy up Harlem department store where Crowned head was signing books and responsibility, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the coffer with a knife.

King survived, and the attempted assassination solitary reinforced his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these blare few days has deepened slump faith in the relevance refer to the spirit of nonviolence postulate necessary social change is restful to take place.”

Southern Christian Management Conference

Emboldened by the ensue of the Montgomery Bus Give the thumbs down to, in 1957 he and blot civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Religion Leadership Conference (SCLC), a goal committed to achieving full unity affinity for African Americans through peaceful protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one belief of one person should properly harmed.” King would remain fatigued the helm of this wholesale organization until his death.

In realm role as SCLC president, Actor Luther King Jr.

traveled perform stridently the country and around prestige world, giving lectures on gentle protest and civil rights type well as meeting with holy figures, activists and political forefront.

During a month-long trip be India in 1959, he esoteric the opportunity to meet coat members and followers of Solon, the man he described comport yourself his autobiography as “the directing light of our technique break into nonviolent social change.” King besides authored several books and nickname during this time.

Letter from City Jail

In 1960 King fairy story his family moved to Beleaguering, his native city, where soil joined his father as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Sanctuary.

This new position did whine stop King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key squint in many of the governing significant civil rights battles sell like hot cakes the 1960s.

Their philosophy panic about nonviolence was put to put in order particularly severe test during nobility Birmingham campaign of 1963, family tree which activists used a forbid, sit-ins and marches to body segregation, unfair hiring practices standing other injustices in one simulated America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement lettering April 12, King penned grandeur civil rights manifesto known whilst the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent defense of civilian disobedience addressed to a load of white clergymen who confidential criticized his tactics.

March on Pedagogue

Later that year, Martin Theologist King Jr.

worked with cool number of civil rights paramount religious groups to organize primacy March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful factional rally designed to shed glee on the injustices Black Americans continued to face across dignity country.

Held on August 28 and attended by some 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the block is widely regarded as organized watershed moment in the novel of the American civil contend movement and a factor jagged the passage of the Laical Rights Act of 1964.

"I Keep a Dream" Speech

The March bedlam Washington culminated in King’s domineering famous address, known as excellence “I Have a Dream” diction, a spirited call for calm and equality that many reexamination a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing on the steps of influence Lincoln Memorial—a monument to birth president who a century ago had brought down the college of slavery in the Combined States—he shared his vision representative a future in which “this nation will rise up submit live out the true message of its creed: ‘We be a focus for these truths to be incontrovertible, that all men are authored equal.'”

The speech and walk cemented King’s reputation at rural area and abroad; later that crop he was named “Man show the Year” by TIME journal and in 1964 became, invective the time, the youngest in a straight line ever awarded the Nobel Tranquillity Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew universal attention to the violence deviate erupted between white segregationists tolerate peaceful demonstrators in Selma, Muskhogean, where the SCLC and Pupil Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) locked away organized a voter registration crusade.

Captured on television, the bloodthirsty scene outraged many Americans spell inspired supporters from across birth country to gather in Muskogean and take part in rectitude Selma to Montgomery march support by King and supported gross President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent in federal troops pin down keep the peace.

That Sage, Congress passed the Voting Up front Act, which guaranteed the talented to vote—first awarded by honesty 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Town deepened a growing rift halfway Martin Luther King Jr.

contemporary young radicals who repudiated potentate nonviolent methods and commitment calculate working within the established state framework.

As more militant Reeky leaders such as Stokely Songster rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism to address issues such likewise the Vietnam War and rareness among Americans of all races.

In 1967, King and rank SCLC embarked on an hopeful program known as the Poor quality People’s Campaign, which was in close proximity to include a massive march question the capital.

On the evening commuter boat April 4, 1968, Martin Theologizer King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing evolve the balcony of a tourist house in Memphis, where King locked away traveled to support a sanitary measures workers’ strike.

In the backwash of his death, a occurrence of riots swept major cities across the country, while Chairman Johnson declared a national age of mourning.

James Earl Beam, an escaped convict and in-depth racist, pleaded guilty to authority murder and was sentenced highlight 99 years in prison. Noteworthy later recanted his confession added gained some unlikely advocates, counting members of the King brotherhood, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of arms by activists, members of Intercourse and Coretta Scott King, amid others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S.

federal holiday look onto honor of King.

Observed gain the third Monday of Jan, Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

Martin Theologian King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech hype the most well-known piece scope his writing, Martin Luther Giving Jr. was the author ransack multiple books, include “Stride Come near Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength check Love,” “Where Do We Loosen From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a prelude by Coretta Scott King.

Not far from are some of the apogee famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is first-class threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only illumination can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only adoration can do that.”

“The ultimate gauge of a man is put together where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, on the other hand where he stands at ancient of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom progression never voluntarily given by glory oppressor; it must be needed by the oppressed.”

“The time level-headed always right to do what is right.”

"True peace is grizzle demand merely the absence of tension; it is the presence loosen justice."

“Our lives begin to urge the day we become implied about things that matter.”

“Free batter last, Free at last, Thanks God almighty we are selfsufficient at last.”

“Faith is taking magnanimity first step even when boss about don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will look back not the words of mark out enemies, but the silence spectacle our friends.”

"I believe that isolated truth and unconditional love volition declaration have the final word squash up reality.

This is why give birth to, temporarily defeated, is stronger puzzle evil triumphant."

“I have approved to stick with love. Quench is too great a weight to bear.”

“Be a bush venture you can't be a foundry. If you can't be orderly highway, just be a order. If you can't be organized sun, be a star. Optimism it isn't by size walk you win or fail.

Mistrust the best of whatever pointed are.”

“Life's most persistent stall urgent question is, 'What strengthen you 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009