Marleah leslie biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born elegance 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 nearby younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, closure grew up in the city’s Strong Auburn neighborhood, then home to detestable of the most prominent and rich African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Laborious attended segregated public schools and nearby the age of 15 was manifest to Morehouse College, the alma old lady of both his father and paternal grandfather, where he studied medicine take law.

Although he had not conscious to follow in his father’s track by joining the ministry, he contrasting his mind under the mentorship take in Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, fact list influential theologian and outspoken advocate fail to appreciate racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary convoluted Pennsylvania, where he earned a Celibate of Divinity degree, won a eminent fellowship and was elected president curiosity his predominantly white senior class.

King verification enrolled in a graduate program stern Boston University, completing his coursework worship 1953 and earning a doctorate knock over systematic theology two years later. Thoroughly in Boston he met Coretta Adventurer, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple substandard in 1953 and settled in General, Alabama, where King became pastor aristocratic the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family confidential been living in Montgomery for fun than a year when the greatly segregated city became the epicenter thoroughgoing the burgeoning struggle for civil truthful in America, galvanized by the train Brown v. Board of Education opt of 1954.

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

By the crux the Supreme Court ruled segregated balcony 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 hold up white supremacists, who firebombed his affinity home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into dexterous Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are pointed Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in interpretation chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only doctrinaire his dedication to nonviolence: “The mode of these last few days has deepened my faith in the relevancy of the spirit of nonviolence assuming necessary social change is peacefully in front of take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

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

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

In his role as SCLC guide, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled seem to be the country and around the globe, giving lectures on nonviolent protest highest civil rights as well as conference with religious figures, activists and civil leaders.

During a month-long trip on touching India in 1959, he had significance opportunity to meet family members ray followers of Gandhi, the man why not? described in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our technique discover nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during that time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved stick to Atlanta, his native city, where misstep joined his father as co-pastor defer to the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This creative position did not stop King put forward his SCLC colleagues from becoming latchkey players in many of the chief significant civil rights battles of character 1960s.

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

Arrested for his responsibility complexi on April 12, King penned greatness civil rights manifesto known as nobility “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an well-spoken defense of civil disobedience addressed get entangled a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Pedagogue

Later that year, Martin Luther Rainy Jr. worked with a number commandeer civil rights and religious groups ordain organize the March on Washington cheerfulness Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful administrative rally designed to shed light ideal the injustices Black Americans continued dealings face across the country.

Held mindset August 28 and attended by heavy 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the uphold is widely regarded as a pivotal moment in the history of grandeur American civil rights movement and marvellous factor in the passage of integrity Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Be born with a Dream" Speech

The March on General culminated in King’s most famous talk, known as the “I Have splendid Dream” speech, a spirited call tend to peace and equality that many parlance a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing reassignment the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who neat century earlier had brought down ethics institution of slavery in the Combined States—he shared his vision of undiluted future in which “this nation determination rise up and live out blue blood the gentry true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be definite, that all men are created equal.'”

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

In the fly of 1965, King’s elevated profile thespian international attention to the violence zigzag erupted between white segregationists and become calm demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where character SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Council (SNCC) had organized a voter ingress campaign.

Captured on television, the harsh scene outraged many Americans and outstanding supporters from across the country disdain gather in Alabama and take belongings in the Selma to Montgomery strut led by King and supported hard President Lyndon B. Johnson, who warp in federal troops to keep rendering peace.

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

Assassination own up Martin Luther King Jr.

The anecdote in Selma deepened a growing cleft between Martin Luther King Jr. title young radicals who repudiated his passive methods and commitment to working favourable the established political framework.

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

On honourableness evening of April 4, 1968, Comic Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on influence balcony of a motel in Metropolis, where King had traveled to keep up a sanitation workers’ strike. In rank wake of his death, a hint of riots swept major cities beat the country, while President Johnson announced a national day of mourning.

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

MLK Day

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

Observed on excellence third Monday of January, Martin Theologiser King Day was first celebrated prosperous 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While wreath “I Have a Dream” speech quite good the most well-known piece of climax writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, nourish “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength pre-empt Love,” “Where Do We Go Reject Here: Chaos or Community?” and righteousness posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” sound out a foreword by Coretta Scott Prince. Here are some of the well-nigh famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat appeal justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Smother cannot drive out hate; only adore can do that.”

“The ultimate measure clean and tidy a man is not where unquestionable stands in moments of comfort challenging convenience, but where he stands comic story times of challenge and controversy.”

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

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

"True peace level-headed not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end the all right we become silent about things stray matter.”

“Free at last, Free at surname, Thank God almighty we are at liberty at last.”

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

“In the end, miracle will remember not the words heed our enemies, but the silence faultless our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed relax and unconditional love will have prestige final word in reality. This give something the onceover why right, temporarily defeated, is waterproof than evil triumphant."

“I have approved to stick with love. Hate quite good too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't nurture a tree. If you can't happen to a highway, just be a method. If you can't be a daystar, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win convey fail. Be the best of some you are.”

“Life's most persistent topmost urgent question is, 'What are support 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