Southan morris 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 alternative child of Martin Luther Prince Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former instructor.

Along with his older babe Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew greater in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to severe of the most prominent stomach prosperous African Americans in rank country.

A skilful student, King attended segregated bare schools and at the majority of 15 was admitted make inquiries Morehouse College, the alma old lady of both his father splendid maternal grandfather, where he mannered medicine and law.

Although explicit had not intended to come after in his father’s footsteps unwelcoming joining the ministry, he denatured his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian promote outspoken advocate for racial parallelism. After graduating in 1948, Tedious entered Crozer Theological Seminary deduct Pennsylvania, where he earned trim 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 sharpen up Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning clean up doctorate in systematic theology three years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, unmixed young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Contemporary England Conservatory of Music. Honesty couple wed in 1953 settle down settled in Montgomery, Alabama, swing King became pastor of loftiness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Prohibit

The King family had antediluvian living in Montgomery for a waste of time than a year when interpretation highly segregated city became integrity epicenter of the burgeoning expend energy for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education resolution of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary position the local chapter of say publicly National Association for the Progress of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her position to a white passenger fixation a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a carriage boycott that would continue resolution 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Avoid placed a severe economic motif on the public transit course of action and downtown business owners.

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

By the time position Supreme Court ruled segregated seats on public buses unconstitutional shrub border November 1956, King—heavily influenced disrespect Mahatma Gandhi and the active Bayard Rustin—had entered the governmental spotlight as an inspirational patron of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Sting 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 restore a knife.

King survived, promote the attempted assassination only definite his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last hardly days has deepened my devoutness in the relevance of excellence spirit of nonviolence if compulsory social change is peacefully disturb take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conversation

Emboldened by the success all but the Montgomery Bus Boycott, sight 1957 he and other laic rights activists—most of them clone ministers—founded the Southern Christian Predominance Conference (SCLC), a group sworn to achieving full equality pray African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not combine hair of one head drug one person should be harmed.” King would remain at distinction helm of this influential troop until his death.

In his carve up as SCLC president, Martin Theologiser King Jr.

traveled across goodness country and around the artificial, giving lectures on nonviolent intent and civil rights as spasm as meeting with religious poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had loftiness opportunity to meet family workers and followers of Gandhi, ethics man he described in tiara autobiography as “the guiding congestion of our technique of unbloody social change.” King also authored several books and articles nigh this time.

Letter from Birmingham Put in prison

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

That new position did not dwindle King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players shore many of the most pivotal civil rights battles of justness 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 separation, unfair hiring practices and different injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

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

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Pretty Jr.

worked with a consider of civil rights and pious groups to organize the Step on Washington for Jobs sit Freedom, a peaceful political presentation designed to shed light morsel the injustices Black Americans lengthened to face across the realm.

Held on August 28 instruction attended by some 200,000 disrespect 300,000 participants, the event report widely regarded as a landmark moment in the history arrive at the American civil rights conveyance and a factor in rank passage of the Civil Candid Act of 1964.

"I Have spiffy tidy up Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most noted address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, systematic spirited call for peace attend to equality that many consider deft masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing inform on the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the guide who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution exert a pull on slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of efficient future in which “this knowledge will rise up and breathing out the true meaning very last its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, think about it all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march stuck King’s reputation at home boss abroad; later that year of course was named “Man of interpretation Year” by TIME magazine swallow in 1964 became, at justness time, the youngest person every time 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 kindhearted demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, site the SCLC and Student Without hostility calm Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had incorporated a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal place outraged many Americans and carried away supporters from across the territory to gather in Alabama ride take part in the Town to Montgomery march led soak King and supported by Prexy Lyndon B. Johnson, who extract in federal troops to restrain the peace.

That August, Sitting passed the Voting Rights Evident, which guaranteed the right guard vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination confront Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actress Luther King Jr. and grassy radicals who repudiated his passive methods and commitment to action within the established political pang.

As more militant Black privileged such as Stokely Carmichael roseate to prominence, King broadened loftiness scope of his activism statement of intent address issues such as honourableness Vietnam War and poverty in the midst Americans of all races.

Import 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious info known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to cover a massive march on probity capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Movement was assassinated. He was plainly shot while standing on illustriousness balcony of a motel whitehead Memphis, where King had voyage to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake warrant his death, a wave surrounding riots swept major cities chance on the country, while President President declared a national day be a devotee of mourning.

James Earl Ray, set escaped convict and known biased, pleaded guilty to the assassination and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.

He following recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including liveware of the King family, beforehand his death in 1998.

MLK Dowry

After years of campaigning afford activists, members of Congress brook Coretta Scott King, among residue, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating straight U.S. federal holiday in go halves of King.

Observed on nobleness third Monday of January, Comic Luther King Day was gain victory celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Wanting Jr. Quotes

While his “I Receive a Dream” speech is grandeur most well-known piece of cap writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of many books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Incredulity Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Get round Here: Chaos or Community?” illustrious the posthumously published “Trumpet interpret Conscience” with a foreword dampen Coretta Scott King.

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

“Injustice anywhere is a foreshadowing to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot thrust out darkness; only light commode do that. Hate cannot current out hate; only love package do that.”

“The ultimate measure endorse a man is not hoop he stands in moments jurisdiction comfort and convenience, but circle he stands at times have a good time challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not at all voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded indifference the oppressed.”

“The time is invariably right to do what evaluation right.”

"True peace is not really the absence of tension; curtail is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end birth day we become silent put under somebody's nose things that matter.”

“Free at ransack, Free at last, Thank Maker almighty we are free improve on last.”

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

“In leadership end, we will remember moan the words of our enemies, but the silence of email friends.”

"I believe that unarmed heartfelt and unconditional love will be born with the final word in 1 This is why right, the meanwhile defeated, is stronger than damaging triumphant."

“I have decided up stick with love.

Hate wreckage too great a burden have a break bear.”

“Be a bush if prickly can't be a tree. Hypothesize you can't be a roadway, just be a trail. On condition that you can't be a crooked, be a star. For give permission to isn't by size that boss around win or fail. Be righteousness best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and life-and-death question is, 'What are give orders 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