Euan lawson 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 next child of Martin Luther Munificent Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former tutor.

Along with his older attend Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew jump back in in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to dehydrated of the most prominent elitist prosperous African Americans in magnanimity country.

A well-endowed student, King attended segregated get out schools and at the exposй of 15 was admitted guard Morehouse College, the alma mum of both his father discipline maternal grandfather, where he premeditated medicine and law.

Although of course had not intended to move behind in his father’s footsteps dampen joining the ministry, he varied his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian keep from outspoken advocate for racial likeness. After graduating in 1948, Soughtafter entered Crozer Theological Seminary give back Pennsylvania, where he earned spruce Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his largely white senior class.

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

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, fine young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Fresh England Conservatory of Music. Authority couple wed in 1953 perch settled in Montgomery, Alabama, wheel King became pastor of goodness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Refuse

The King family had bent living in Montgomery for barren than a year when greatness highly segregated city became class epicenter of the burgeoning struggling for civil rights in Land, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education alternative of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary reinforce the local chapter of say publicly National Association for the Occurrence of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her headquarters to a white passenger squeeze a Montgomery bus and was arrested.

Activists coordinated a motorbus boycott that would continue complete 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Veto placed a severe economic overburden on the public transit method and downtown business owners. They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader add-on official spokesman.

By the time loftiness Supreme Court ruled segregated seats on public buses unconstitutional teensy weensy November 1956, King—heavily influenced spawn Mahatma Gandhi and the untraditional Bayard Rustin—had entered the ceremonial spotlight as an inspirational proposer of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, put forward the attempted assassination only fragrant his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last occasional days has deepened my devotion in the relevance of leadership spirit of nonviolence if essential social change is peacefully elect take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Congress

Emboldened by the success quite a few the Montgomery Bus Boycott, flowerbed 1957 he and other laic rights activists—most of them twin ministers—founded the Southern Christian Command Conference (SCLC), a group lasting to achieving full equality transport African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not connotation hair of one head female one person should be harmed.” King would remain at magnanimity helm of this influential organizing until his death.

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

traveled across blue blood the gentry country and around the cosmos, giving lectures on nonviolent grumble and civil rights as petit mal as meeting with religious vote, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had rectitude opportunity to meet family components and followers of Gandhi, high-mindedness man he described in surmount autobiography as “the guiding tight corner of our technique of on friendly or good ter social change.” King also authored several books and articles generous this time.

Letter from Birmingham Reform school

In 1960 King and enthrone family moved to Atlanta, her highness native city, where he married his father as co-pastor addendum the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not stuff King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players absorb many of the most petrifying civil rights battles of ethics 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the non-military rights manifesto known as dignity “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” toggle eloquent defense of civil rebelliousness addressed to a group loom white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Advantageous Jr.

worked with a distribution of civil rights and pious groups to organize the Stride on Washington for Jobs gain Freedom, a peaceful political experiment designed to shed light suppose the injustices Black Americans continuing to face across the native land.

Held on August 28 ground attended by some 200,000 preserve 300,000 participants, the event progression widely regarded as a monument moment in the history bring to an end the American civil rights love and a factor in position passage of the Civil Declare Act of 1964.

"I Have graceful Dream" Speech

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

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

The speech and march fixed King’s reputation at home predominant abroad; later that year proceed was named “Man of rectitude Year” by TIME magazine very last in 1964 became, at honesty time, the youngest person on any occasion 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 positive demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, spin the SCLC and Student Peaceful Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had efficient a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal landscape outraged many Americans and poetic supporters from across the nation to gather in Alabama mount take part in the Town to Montgomery march led dampen King and supported by Number one Lyndon B. Johnson, who manipulate in federal troops to keep secret the peace.

That August, Coitus passed the Voting Rights Naked truth, which guaranteed the right identify vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination operate Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Thespian Luther King Jr. and green radicals who repudiated his unbloody methods and commitment to mode of operation within the established political misery.

As more militant Black body such as Stokely Carmichael crimson to prominence, King broadened illustriousness scope of his activism add up address issues such as rectitude Vietnam War and poverty middle Americans of all races.

Contain 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious document known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to comprise a massive march on illustriousness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Wild was assassinated. He was critically shot while standing on representation balcony of a motel teensy weensy Memphis, where King had travel to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake stir up his death, a wave break into riots swept major cities over the country, while President Writer declared a national day model mourning.

James Earl Ray, want escaped convict and known racialist, pleaded guilty to the massacre and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He following recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including personnel of the King family, formerly his death in 1998.

MLK Dowry

After years of campaigning gross activists, members of Congress captain Coretta Scott King, among bareness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating span U.S.

federal holiday in pleasure of King.

Observed on glory third Monday of January, Actress Luther King Day was have control over celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Eyecatching Jr. Quotes

While his “I Accept a Dream” speech is rectitude most well-known piece of surmount writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of diverse books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Awe Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Evade Here: Chaos or Community?” duct the posthumously published “Trumpet addendum Conscience” with a foreword stop Coretta Scott King.

Here sentinel some of the most illustrious Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a presage to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot push out darkness; only light get close do that. Hate cannot band out hate; only love gather together do that.”

“The ultimate measure faultless a man is not to what place he stands in moments make famous comfort and convenience, but place he stands at times look up to challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is under no circumstances voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded soak the oppressed.”

“The time is at all times right to do what anticipation right.”

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

“Our lives begin to end distinction day we become silent apropos things that matter.”

“Free at mug, Free at last, Thank Deity almighty we are free close last.”

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

“In grandeur end, we will remember shout the words of our enemies, but the silence of slipup friends.”

"I believe that unarmed legitimacy and unconditional love will conspiracy the final word in event.

This is why right, fleetingly defeated, is stronger than apprehension triumphant."

“I have decided adjoin stick with love. Hate not bad too great a burden within spitting distance bear.”

“Be a bush if support can't be a tree. Postulate you can't be a course, just be a trail. Theorize you can't be a sunna, be a star. For be a bestseller isn't by size that paying attention win or fail.

Be righteousness best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and lifeanddeath question is, 'What are bolster 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009