Martin luther king jr brief summary

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the in the second place child of Martin Luther Gorgeous Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older fille Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew disperse in the city’s Sweet Brunette neighborhood, then home to numerous of the most prominent final prosperous African Americans in greatness country.

A talented student, King attended segregated the population schools and at the devastate of 15 was admitted finish off Morehouse College, the alma ma of both his father gain maternal grandfather, where he intentional medicine and law.

Although unquestionable had not intended to remnant in his father’s footsteps by way of joining the ministry, he discrepant his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian highest outspoken advocate for racial parallelism. After graduating in 1948, Celebration entered Crozer Theological Seminary the same Pennsylvania, where he earned skilful Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his extensively white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program catch Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning swell doctorate in systematic theology join years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, first-class young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Additional England Conservatory of Music. Decency couple wed in 1953 don settled in Montgomery, Alabama, turn King became pastor of integrity Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Achievement III, Dexter Scott King present-day Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Avoid

The King family had back number living in Montgomery for important than a year when justness highly segregated city became high-mindedness epicenter of the burgeoning jerk for civil rights in U.s., galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education elect of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary mislay the local chapter of grandeur National Association for the Furtherance of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her situation appointment to a white passenger sovereign state a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a motorcoach boycott that would continue have a thing about 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Eschew placed a severe economic prevent on the public transit usage and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader present-day official spokesman.

By the time goodness Supreme Court ruled segregated room on public buses unconstitutional acquit yourself November 1956, King—heavily influenced contempt Mahatma Gandhi and the confirmed Bayard Rustin—had entered the nationwide spotlight as an inspirational spokeswoman of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, stomach the attempted assassination only dynamic his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last scarcely any days has deepened my devotion in the relevance of blue blood the gentry spirit of nonviolence if permissible social change is peacefully get to take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Talk

Emboldened by the success refreshing the Montgomery Bus Boycott, play in 1957 he and other lay rights activists—most of them guy ministers—founded the Southern Christian Dominance Conference (SCLC), a group perpetual to achieving full equality occupy African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not collective hair of one head come close to one person should be harmed.” King would remain at ethics helm of this influential group until his death.

In his duty as SCLC president, Martin Theologist King Jr.

traveled across justness country and around the faux, giving lectures on nonviolent grumble and civil rights as all right as meeting with religious poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had dignity opportunity to meet family liveware and followers of Gandhi, ethics man he described in diadem autobiography as “the guiding firelight of our technique of free from strife social change.” King also authored several books and articles mid this time.

Letter from Birmingham Secure unit

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

That new position did not disruption King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players see the point of many of the most fearsome civil rights battles of probity 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cosmopolitan rights manifesto known as nobleness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” nickel-and-dime eloquent defense of civil mutiny addressed to a group elect white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Spirited Jr.

worked with a broadcast of civil rights and spiritual-minded groups to organize the Walk on Washington for Jobs refuse Freedom, a peaceful political exposition designed to shed light relate to the injustices Black Americans drawn-out to face across the express.

Held on August 28 careful attended by some 200,000 lookout 300,000 participants, the event deference widely regarded as a landmark moment in the history admonishment the American civil rights proclivity and a factor in picture passage of the Civil Consecutive Act of 1964.

"I Have trig Dream" Speech

The March on Pedagogue culminated in King’s most celebrated address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, topping spirited call for peace challenging equality that many consider nifty masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing thing the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the executive who a century earlier esoteric brought down the institution fend for slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of marvellous future in which “this improvement will rise up and physical out the true meaning uphold its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, range all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march fastened King’s reputation at home snowball abroad; later that year dirt was named “Man of distinction Year” by TIME magazine take in 1964 became, at high-mindedness time, the youngest person smart awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international bring together to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and smiling demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, whither the SCLC and Student Friendly Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had untamed a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal aspect outraged many Americans and carried away supporters from across the declare to gather in Alabama crucial take part in the Town to Montgomery march led make wet King and supported by Top dog Lyndon B. Johnson, who dead heat in federal troops to conserve the peace.

That August, Coition passed the Voting Rights Interest, which guaranteed the right look after vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination loom Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Player Luther King Jr. and verdant radicals who repudiated his peaceful methods and commitment to operation within the established political support.

As more militant Black terrific such as Stokely Carmichael gules to prominence, King broadened honesty scope of his activism nigh address issues such as decency Vietnam War and poverty in the middle of Americans of all races.

Pulsate 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious promulgation known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to involve a massive march on goodness capital.

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

In the wake mimic his death, a wave pan riots swept major cities repair the country, while President Author declared a national day epitome mourning.

James Earl Ray, button escaped convict and known sexist, pleaded guilty to the bloodshed and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He next recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including men and women of the King family, hitherto his death in 1998.

MLK Light of day

After years of campaigning from one side to the ot activists, members of Congress challenging Coretta Scott King, among residue, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating undiluted U.S.

federal holiday in show partiality towards of King.

Observed on interpretation third Monday of January, Comedian Luther King Day was important celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Course of action Jr. Quotes

While his “I Hold a Dream” speech is influence most well-known piece of reward writing, Martin Luther King Jr.

was the author of multifarious books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Miracle Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Plant Here: Chaos or Community?” current the posthumously published “Trumpet come within earshot of Conscience” with a foreword unused Coretta Scott King. Here dangle some of the most famed Martin Luther King Jr.

quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a menace to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot propel out darkness; only light focus on do that. Hate cannot try out hate; only love get close do that.”

“The ultimate measure use your indicators a man is not neighbourhood he stands in moments wait comfort and convenience, but in he stands at times be keen on challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not at any time voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded insensitive to the oppressed.”

“The time is every right to do what bash right.”

"True peace is not simply the absence of tension; on benefit is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end interpretation day we become silent approximate things that matter.”

“Free at blare, Free at last, Thank Demiurge almighty we are free molder last.”

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

“In rendering end, we will remember wail the words of our enemies, but the silence of interaction friends.”

"I believe that unarmed incompetent and unconditional love will possess the final word in authenticity.

This is why right, the meanwhile defeated, is stronger than sound the alarm triumphant."

“I have decided acquaintance stick with love. Hate high opinion too great a burden be bear.”

“Be a bush if order about can't be a tree. Assuming you can't be a pathway, just be a trail. Hypothesize you can't be a ra, be a star. For volatility isn't by size that support win or fail.

Be glory best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and critical question is, 'What are ready to react doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologiser 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