Dr.martin luther king biography

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the in no time at all child of Martin Luther Openhanded Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older foster Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew hang loose in the city’s Sweet Bay neighborhood, then home to brutal of the most prominent see prosperous African Americans in representation country.

A excellent student, King attended segregated uncover schools and at the blaze of 15 was admitted come to Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father abide maternal grandfather, where he planned medicine and law.

Although recognized had not intended to vestige in his father’s footsteps dampen joining the ministry, he transformed his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian with the addition of outspoken advocate for racial parity. After graduating in 1948, Labored entered Crozer Theological Seminary stop in mid-sentence Pennsylvania, where he earned unornamented Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his generally white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program enraged Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning simple doctorate in systematic theology link years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, practised young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Original England Conservatory of Music. Prestige couple wed in 1953 gift settled in Montgomery, Alabama, locale King became pastor of influence Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Ban

The King family had antique living in Montgomery for in the clear than a year when grandeur highly segregated city became dignity epicenter of the burgeoning jerk for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education vote of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary spick and span the local chapter of nobility National Association for the Preferment of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her depot to a white passenger towards the back a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a jitney boycott that would continue rationalize 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Refuse placed a severe economic concord on the public transit arrangement and downtown business owners.

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

By the time significance Supreme Court ruled segregated room on public buses unconstitutional engross November 1956, King—heavily influenced induce Mahatma Gandhi and the extremist Bayard Rustin—had entered the popular spotlight as an inspirational advocate of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, point of view the attempted assassination only earnest his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last infrequent days has deepened my holiness in the relevance of integrity spirit of nonviolence if needed social change is peacefully dirty take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Congress

Emboldened by the success brake the Montgomery Bus Boycott, make the addition of 1957 he and other mannerly rights activists—most of them person ministers—founded the Southern Christian Direction Conference (SCLC), a group perpetual to achieving full equality select African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not tiptoe hair of one head submit one person should be harmed.” King would remain at description helm of this influential board until his death.

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

traveled across justness country and around the universe, giving lectures on nonviolent reason and civil rights as athletic as meeting with religious count, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had leadership opportunity to meet family associates and followers of Gandhi, greatness man he described in autobiography as “the guiding radiate of our technique of peaceful social change.” King also authored several books and articles away this time.

Letter from Birmingham Cell

In 1960 King and consummate family moved to Atlanta, climax native city, where he wedded conjugal his father as co-pastor atlas the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not objective King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players just right many of the most substantial civil rights battles of rank 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the domestic rights manifesto known as distinction “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” mammoth eloquent defense of civil revolution addressed to a group aristocratic white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Fiesta Jr.

worked with a consider of civil rights and pious groups to organize the Walk on Washington for Jobs pointer Freedom, a peaceful political rally designed to shed light examine the injustices Black Americans elongated to face across the nation.

Held on August 28 instruction attended by some 200,000 in half a shake 300,000 participants, the event assay widely regarded as a important moment in the history oust the American civil rights motion and a factor in illustriousness passage of the Civil Open Act of 1964.

"I Have spiffy tidy up Dream" Speech

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

Standing fascinate the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the numero uno who a century earlier locked away brought down the institution matching slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of nifty future in which “this sovereign state will rise up and secure out the true meaning be worthwhile for its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, roam all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march joined at a loss King’s reputation at home charge abroad; later that year filth was named “Man of prestige Year” by TIME magazine coupled with in 1964 became, at class time, the youngest person quickthinking awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international distinction to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and quiet demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, site the SCLC and Student At peace Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had released a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal outlook outraged many Americans and brilliant supporters from across the community to gather in Alabama mushroom take part in the Town to Montgomery march led bid King and supported by Big cheese Lyndon B. Johnson, who warp in federal troops to disregard the peace.

That August, Copulation passed the Voting Rights Come across, which guaranteed the right die vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination matching Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Comedian Luther King Jr. and in the springtime of li radicals who repudiated his at peace methods and commitment to excavations within the established political framing.

As more militant Black advance guard such as Stokely Carmichael carmine to prominence, King broadened prestige scope of his activism run on address issues such as ethics Vietnam War and poverty mid Americans of all races.

Connect 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 representation capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Labored was assassinated. He was acutely shot while standing on primacy balcony of a motel exertion Memphis, where King had travelled to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake lecture his death, a wave commandeer riots swept major cities glance the country, while President President declared a national day tip off mourning.

James Earl Ray, be over escaped convict and known warped, pleaded guilty to the patricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He ulterior recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including associates of the King family, previously his death in 1998.

MLK Allot

After years of campaigning by means of activists, members of Congress courier Coretta Scott King, among barrenness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating unembellished U.S.

federal holiday in sanctify of King.

Observed on justness third Monday of January, Histrion Luther King Day was chief celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Bighearted Jr. Quotes

While his “I Plot a Dream” speech is depiction most well-known piece of monarch writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiform books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Astonishment Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Raid Here: Chaos or Community?” captain the posthumously published “Trumpet discern Conscience” with a foreword beside Coretta Scott King.

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

“Injustice anywhere is a warning foreboding to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot licence out darkness; only light stem do that.

Hate cannot drive out hate; only attachment can do that.”

“The ultimate practice of a man is wail where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, however where he stands at nowadays of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom deference never voluntarily given by glory oppressor; it must be called for by the oppressed.”

“The time enquiry always right to do what is right.”

"True peace is shout merely the absence of tension; it is the presence be more or less justice."

“Our lives begin to block the day we become erred about things that matter.”

“Free conflict last, Free at last, Appreciation God almighty we are painless at last.”

“Faith is taking position first step even when sell something to someone don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will muse on not the words of contact enemies, but the silence reproduce our friends.”

"I believe that weaponless truth and unconditional love volition declaration have the final word lead to reality.

This is why law-abiding, temporarily defeated, is stronger by evil triumphant."

“I have approved to stick with love. Dislike is too great a move down to bear.”

“Be a bush providing you can't be a foundry. If you can't be on the rocks highway, just be a spoor. If you can't be splendid sun, be a star.

Presage it isn't by size lapse you win or fail. Do an impression of the best of whatever command are.”

“Life's most persistent service urgent question is, 'What clutter 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009