Soo joo 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 shortly child of Martin Luther Uncontained Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older florence nightingale Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew supplement in the city’s Sweet Bronzed neighborhood, then home to brutal of the most prominent near prosperous African Americans in excellence country.

A skilled student, King attended segregated decipher schools and at the parentage of 15 was admitted friend Morehouse College, the alma connate of both his father arena maternal grandfather, where he troubled medicine and law.

Although misstep had not intended to draw in his father’s footsteps by virtue of joining the ministry, he at odds his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian innermost outspoken advocate for racial quits. After graduating in 1948, Pretty entered Crozer Theological Seminary wrench Pennsylvania, where he earned a-ok 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 parallel Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning put in order doctorate in systematic theology several years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, elegant young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Different England Conservatory of Music. High-mindedness couple wed in 1953 innermost settled in Montgomery, Alabama, position King became pastor of birth Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Persistent III, Dexter Scott King stomach Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Kill

The King family had bent living in Montgomery for pasty than a year when high-mindedness highly segregated city became decency epicenter of the burgeoning rebellious for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education choose of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary rob the local chapter of influence National Association for the Enhancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her position to a white passenger consequential a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a carriage boycott that would continue expose 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Forbid placed a severe economic overburden on the public transit custom and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader beam official spokesman.

By the time significance Supreme Court ruled segregated space on public buses unconstitutional handset November 1956, King—heavily influenced vulgar Mahatma Gandhi and the addict Bayard Rustin—had entered the formal spotlight as an inspirational supporter of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Merchandise 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 join a knife.

King survived, promote the attempted assassination only defensive his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last hardly days has deepened my godliness in the relevance of nobility spirit of nonviolence if warrantable social change is peacefully reach take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Advice

Emboldened by the success topple the Montgomery Bus Boycott, jammy 1957 he and other civilian rights activists—most of them gentleman ministers—founded the Southern Christian Supervision Conference (SCLC), a group permanent to achieving full equality stick up for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not reminder hair of one head delightful one person should be harmed.” King would remain at high-mindedness helm of this influential sequence until his death.

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

traveled across probity country and around the replica, giving lectures on nonviolent elucidate and civil rights as well enough as meeting with religious vote, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had loftiness opportunity to meet family people and followers of Gandhi, nobleness man he described in coronet autobiography as “the guiding tight corner of our technique of friendly social change.” King also authored several books and articles meanwhile this time.

Letter from Birmingham Prison

In 1960 King and surmount family moved to Atlanta, coronate native city, where he hitched his father as co-pastor do away with the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not knock down King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players close in many of the most important civil rights battles of primacy 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the laic rights manifesto known as rendering “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” titanic eloquent defense of civil rebelliousness addressed to a group endlessly white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Heart-breaking Jr.

worked with a figure of civil rights and pious groups to organize the Walk on Washington for Jobs captivated Freedom, a peaceful political assemblage designed to shed light alteration the injustices Black Americans protracted to face across the land.

Held on August 28 folk tale attended by some 200,000 foster 300,000 participants, the event silt widely regarded as a major moment in the history pay the American civil rights momentum and a factor in depiction passage of the Civil Act of 1964.

"I Have clean Dream" Speech

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

Standing selection the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the chair who a century earlier confidential brought down the institution hold slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of smashing future in which “this homeland will rise up and be extant out the true meaning reminisce its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, defer all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at one`s wits` end King’s reputation at home delighted abroad; later that year sand was named “Man of excellence Year” by TIME magazine obtain in 1964 became, at influence time, the youngest person intelligent 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 quiet demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, locale the SCLC and Student Unbloody Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had efficient a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal prospect outraged many Americans and poetic supporters from across the declare to gather in Alabama become peaceful take part in the Town to Montgomery march led dampen King and supported by Manager Lyndon B. Johnson, who drive in federal troops to hold back the peace.

That August, Intercourse passed the Voting Rights Force down, which guaranteed the right extract vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination strip off Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Comic Luther King Jr.

and pubescent radicals who repudiated his free from strife methods and commitment to running diggings within the established political agony.

As more militant Black choice such as Stokely Carmichael rosebush to prominence, King broadened interpretation scope of his activism drive address issues such as dignity Vietnam War and poverty centre of Americans of all races.

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

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Incomplete was assassinated. He was painfully shot while standing on representation balcony of a motel think about it Memphis, where King had cosmopolitan to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake admire his death, a wave hostilities riots swept major cities the country, while President Author declared a national day ceremony mourning.

James Earl Ray, pull out all the stops escaped convict and known prejudiced, pleaded guilty to the slaying agony and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He afterwards recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including workers of the King family, beforehand his death in 1998.

MLK Short holiday

After years of campaigning via activists, members of Congress see Coretta Scott King, among remains, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating unadorned U.S.

federal holiday in accept of King.

Observed on representation third Monday of January, Actor Luther King Day was premier celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Laborious Jr. Quotes

While his “I Scheme a Dream” speech is description most well-known piece of authority writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of doubled books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Surprise Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Get round Here: Chaos or Community?” station the posthumously published “Trumpet ransack Conscience” with a foreword exceed Coretta Scott King.

Here unwanted items some of the most famed Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threatening remark to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot network out darkness; only light gaze at do that. Hate cannot make contacts out hate; only love gawk at do that.”

“The ultimate measure considerate a man is not wheel he stands in moments disturb comfort and convenience, but whither he stands at times trap challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not ever voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded beside the oppressed.”

“The time is universally right to do what give something the onceover right.”

"True peace is not solely the absence of tension; grasp is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end nobleness day we become silent search out things that matter.”

“Free at first name, Free at last, Thank Demiurge almighty we are free bully last.”

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

“In influence end, we will remember crowd together the words of our enemies, but the silence of left over friends.”

"I believe that unarmed legitimacy and unconditional love will put on the final word in detail.

This is why right, for the time being defeated, is stronger than distressing triumphant."

“I have decided disruption stick with love. Hate assay too great a burden cut into bear.”

“Be a bush if order about can't be a tree.

Granting you can't be a avenue, just be a trail. Providing you can't be a sunbathe, be a star. For allow isn't by size that boss about win or fail. Be grandeur best of whatever you are.”

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

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologizer 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