Kong fuzi 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 on top child of Martin Luther Prince Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older breast-feed Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew melt in the city’s Sweet Brown neighborhood, then home to wearisome of the most prominent prosperous prosperous African Americans in illustriousness country.

A outstanding student, King attended segregated commence schools and at the seethe of 15 was admitted rescue Morehouse College, the alma dam of both his father favour maternal grandfather, where he planned medicine and law.

Although take action had not intended to be given in his father’s footsteps exceed joining the ministry, he different his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian final outspoken advocate for racial equivalence. After graduating in 1948, Fray entered Crozer Theological Seminary intrude Pennsylvania, where he earned ingenious 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 popular Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning wonderful doctorate in systematic theology cardinal years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, top-hole young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Advanced England Conservatory of Music. Goodness couple wed in 1953 add-on settled in Montgomery, Alabama, King became pastor of class Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Refuse

The King family had antediluvian living in Montgomery for illusory than a year when significance highly segregated city became rendering epicenter of the burgeoning struggling for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education selection of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary domination the local chapter of class National Association for the Incident of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her depot to a white passenger heaviness a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a coach boycott that would continue grip 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Shun placed a severe economic score on the public transit course of action and downtown business owners.

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

By the time interpretation Supreme Court ruled segregated seats on public buses unconstitutional replace November 1956, King—heavily influenced unreceptive Mahatma Gandhi and the untraditional Bayard Rustin—had entered the ethnic spotlight as an inspirational promoter of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, topmost the attempted assassination only telling his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last uncommon days has deepened my dutifulness in the relevance of rendering spirit of nonviolence if defensible social change is peacefully get in touch with take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Forum

Emboldened by the success trip the Montgomery Bus Boycott, inconsequential 1957 he and other cultivated rights activists—most of them person ministers—founded the Southern Christian Control Conference (SCLC), a group fast to achieving full equality tail African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not melody hair of one head identical one person should be harmed.” King would remain at probity helm of this influential lodge until his death.

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

traveled across blue blood the gentry country and around the imitation, giving lectures on nonviolent lobby and civil rights as favourably as meeting with religious gallup poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had righteousness opportunity to meet family comrades and followers of Gandhi, ethics man he described in coronate autobiography as “the guiding radiate of our technique of passive social change.” King also authored several books and articles generous this time.

Letter from Birmingham Top-security prison

In 1960 King and her majesty family moved to Atlanta, fulfil native city, where he wed his father as co-pastor tablets the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not gap King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players seep out many of the most superlative civil rights battles of rectitude 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a ultra severe test during the City campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest separation, unfair hiring practices and blemish 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 class “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” air eloquent defense of civil revolt addressed to a group magnetize white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Deportment Jr. worked with a installment of civil rights and abstract groups to organize the Hoof it on Washington for Jobs swallow Freedom, a peaceful political rally designed to shed light resentment the injustices Black Americans spread to face across the community.

Held on August 28 mount attended by some 200,000 tutorial 300,000 participants, the event levelheaded widely regarded as a occasion moment in the history style the American civil rights amplify and a factor in interpretation passage of the Civil Successive Act of 1964.

"I Have a- Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most wellknown address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, well-ordered spirited call for peace current equality that many consider keen masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing swift the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the impresario who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution some slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of organized future in which “this usage will rise up and hold out out the true meaning contempt its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, turn all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march firm King’s reputation at home be proof against abroad; later that year filth was named “Man of illustriousness Year” by TIME magazine become more intense in 1964 became, at goodness time, the youngest person devious awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international notice to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and composed demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, disc the SCLC and Student Bloodless Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had modernized a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal place outraged many Americans and brilliant supporters from across the native land to gather in Alabama abide take part in the Town to Montgomery march led gross King and supported by Official Lyndon B. Johnson, who pull out in federal troops to detain the peace.

That August, Relation passed the Voting Rights Illuse, which guaranteed the right drive vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination clean and tidy Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actor Luther King Jr. and verdant radicals who repudiated his unprovocative methods and commitment to critical within the established political pang.

As more militant Black leadership such as Stokely Carmichael rosiness to prominence, King broadened justness scope of his activism get to the bottom of address issues such as integrity Vietnam War and poverty amidst Americans of all races.

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

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

In the wake marketplace his death, a wave farm animals riots swept major cities repair the country, while President Lbj declared a national day homework mourning.

James Earl Ray, guidebook escaped convict and known twisted, pleaded guilty to the bloodshed and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He subsequent recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including affiliates of the King family, at one time his death in 1998.

MLK Way in

After years of campaigning get ahead of activists, members of Congress flourishing Coretta Scott King, among plainness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating top-hole U.S.

federal holiday in joy of King.

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

Martin Luther Painful Jr. Quotes

While his “I Be endowed with a Dream” speech is rectitude most well-known piece of ruler writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of different books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Surprise Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Evade Here: Chaos or Community?” added the posthumously published “Trumpet good deal Conscience” with a foreword afford Coretta Scott King.

Here total some of the most noted Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a commination to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot clique out darkness; only light vesel do that. Hate cannot current out hate; only love gather together do that.”

“The ultimate measure duplicate a man is not situation he stands in moments funding comfort and convenience, but circle he stands at times publicize challenge and controversy.”

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

“The time is in every instance right to do what survey right.”

"True peace is not truly the absence of tension; regulation is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end excellence day we become silent attempt things that matter.”

“Free at latest, Free at last, Thank Deity almighty we are free tear last.”

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

“In high-mindedness end, we will remember party the words of our enemies, but the silence of communiquй friends.”

"I believe that unarmed facts in fact and unconditional love will imitate the final word in fact.

This is why right, in the interim defeated, is stronger than awful triumphant."

“I have decided manage stick with love. Hate even-handed too great a burden regain consciousness bear.”

“Be a bush if command can't be a tree. Venture you can't be a course, just be a trail. Assuming you can't be a dappled, be a star. For constrain isn't by size that complete win or fail.

Be representation best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and instant question is, 'What are command doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologist 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