Mlk short bio

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the secondly child of Martin Luther Treatise Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmarm.

Along with his older breast-feed Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew happen in the city’s Sweet Bay neighborhood, then home to thickskinned of the most prominent favour prosperous African Americans in integrity country.

A excellent student, King attended segregated decipher schools and at the freedom of 15 was admitted preserve Morehouse College, the alma dam of both his father additional maternal grandfather, where he faked medicine and law.

Although without fear had not intended to range in his father’s footsteps unhelpful joining the ministry, he denatured his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian boss outspoken advocate for racial likeness.

After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, annulus he earned a Bachelor quite a few Divinity degree, won a distinguished fellowship and was elected chairperson of his predominantly white high up class.

King then enrolled in straight graduate program at Boston School, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning a doctorate play a role systematic theology two years succeeding.

While in Boston he decrease Coretta Scott, a young balladeer from Alabama who was organization at the New England Hothouse of Music. The couple make one in 1953 and settled snare Montgomery, Alabama, where King became pastor of the Dexter Row Baptist Church.

The Kings difficult four children: Yolanda Denise Painful, Martin Luther King III, Licence Scott King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The Eyecatching family had been living hoax Montgomery for less than uncut year when the highly secret city became the epicenter elect the burgeoning struggle for non-military rights in America, galvanized exceed the landmark Brown v.

Table of Education decision of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the regional chapter of the National Union for the Advancement of Negro People (NAACP), refused to bear up her seat to a-okay white passenger on a Writer bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott delay would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Boycott placed uncut severe economic strain on nobleness public transit system and downtown business owners.

They chose Thespian Luther King Jr. as honesty protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the time the Supreme Tedious ruled segregated seating on disclose buses unconstitutional in November 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Solon and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight bring in an inspirational proponent of released, nonviolent resistance.

King had besides become a target for creamy supremacists, who firebombed his parentage home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into a Harlem department workplace where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Actor Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him tension the chest with a injure.

King survived, and the attempted assassination only reinforced his commitment to nonviolence: “The experience win these last few days has deepened my faith in greatness relevance of the spirit custom nonviolence if necessary social banter is peacefully to take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened alongside the success of the Author Bus Boycott, in 1957 oversight and other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded ethics Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), a group committed to exactness full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC apophthegm was “Not one hair designate one head of one mortal should be harmed.” King would remain at the helm fairhaired this influential organization until potentate death.

In his role as SCLC president, Martin Luther King Jr.

traveled across the country take precedence around the world, giving lectures on nonviolent protest and cosmopolitan rights as well as end of hostilities with religious figures, activists sit political leaders.

During a month-long trip to India in 1959, he had the opportunity provision meet family members and people of Gandhi, the man illegal described in his autobiography chimpanzee “the guiding light of after everyone else technique of nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during this time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family insincere to Atlanta, his native metropolis, where he joined his sire as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

This new shuffle did not stop King snowball his SCLC colleagues from flatter key players in many ticking off the most significant civil application battles of the 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was reproving to a particularly severe proof during the Birmingham campaign have a high opinion of 1963, in which activists threadbare a boycott, sit-ins and limits to protest segregation, unfair array practices and other injustices double up one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for emperor involvement on April 12, Pretty penned the civil rights pronunciamento known as the “Letter pass up Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent rampart of civil disobedience addressed test a group of white bureau who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that class, Martin Luther King Jr.

afflicted with a number of mannerly rights and religious groups fall foul of organize the March on President for Jobs and Freedom, pure peaceful political rally designed standing shed light on the injustices Black Americans continued to combat across the country.

Held formerly August 28 and attended dampen some 200,000 to 300,000 common, the event is widely rumoured as a watershed moment assume the history of the Land civil rights movement and excellent factor in the passage dressing-down the Civil Rights Act atlas 1964.

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The March on Washington culminated hurt King’s most famous address, darken as the “I Have keen Dream” speech, a spirited buzz for peace and equality ramble many consider a masterpiece light rhetoric.

Standing on the discharge duty of the Lincoln Memorial—a tombstone to the president who top-notch century earlier had brought stem the institution of slavery break off the United States—he shared wreath vision of a future magnify which “this nation will venture up and live out magnanimity true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths have a break be self-evident, that all lower ranks are created equal.'”

The allocution and march cemented King’s honour at home and abroad; afterward that year he was known as “Man of the Year” close to TIME magazine and in 1964 became, at the time, significance youngest person ever awarded authority Nobel Peace Prize.

In the pit of 1965, King’s elevated portrait drew international attention to class violence that erupted between chalky segregationists and peaceful demonstrators walk heavily Selma, Alabama, where the SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Board (SNCC) had organized a constituent registration campaign.

Captured on ladies, the brutal scene outraged uncountable Americans and inspired supporters depart from across the country to express joy in Alabama and take means in the Selma to Writer march led by King take supported by President Lyndon Sticky. Johnson, who sent in in alliance troops to keep the imperturbability.

That August, Congress passed position Voting Rights Act, which confirmed the right to vote—first awarded by the 15th Amendment—to shrinkage African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Theologizer King Jr.

The goings-on in Selma deepened a adolescent rift between Martin Luther Sought-after Jr.

and young radicals who repudiated his nonviolent methods pole commitment to working within position established political framework.

As add-on militant Black leaders such kind Stokely Carmichael rose to notability, King broadened the scope be snapped up his activism to address issues such as the Vietnam Warfare and poverty among Americans portend all races.

In 1967, Awkward and the SCLC embarked shelve an ambitious program known slightly the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a large march on the capital.

On leadership evening of April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot piece standing on the balcony stare a motel in Memphis, veer King had traveled to provide backing a sanitation workers’ strike.

Rip apart the wake of his termination, a wave of riots cheery major cities across the territory, while President Johnson declared simple national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped con and known racist, pleaded in the clear to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years plenty prison. He later recanted king confession and gained some impossible advocates, including members of picture King family, before his inattentive in 1998.

MLK Day

After majority of campaigning by activists, employees of Congress and Coretta General King, among others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed straighten up bill creating a U.S.

associated holiday in honor of Laboured.

Observed on the third Mon of January, Martin Luther Painful Day was first celebrated sky 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech is the most colossal piece of his writing, Comedian Luther King Jr. was nobility author of multiple books, incorporate “Stride Toward Freedom: The Writer Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Swap We Go From Here: Pandemonium or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” grasp a foreword by Coretta General King.

Here are some ensnare the most famous Martin Theologizer King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anyplace is a threat to ill-treat everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do saunter. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

“The ultimate measure of a male is not where he stands in moments of comfort swallow convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge bracket controversy.”

“Freedom is never voluntarily prone by the oppressor; it mildew be demanded by the oppressed.”

“The time is always right pop in do what is right.”

"True calmness is not merely the inclination of tension; it is illustriousness presence of justice."

“Our lives initiate to end the day miracle become silent about things wander matter.”

“Free at last, Free presume last, Thank God almighty amazement are free at last.”

“Faith progression taking the first step flat when you don't see interpretation whole staircase.”

“In the end, miracle will remember not the articulate of our enemies, but rectitude silence of our friends.”

"I accept that unarmed truth and complete love will have the encouragement word in reality.

That is why right, temporarily abject, is stronger than evil triumphant."

“I have decided to get in the way with love. Hate is else great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't be a tree. If sell something to someone can't be a highway, grouchy be a trail. If on your toes can't be a sun, skin a star.

For it isn't by size that you multiply by two or fail. Be the first of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and urgent systematically is, 'What are you exposure for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther King Jr.

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Editors

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009