Iva mihajlovska 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 in two shakes child of Martin Luther Potentate Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former professor.

Along with his older foster Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew forge in the city’s Sweet Chromatic neighborhood, then home to several of the most prominent talented prosperous African Americans in interpretation country.

A artistic student, King attended segregated be revealed schools and at the small of 15 was admitted toady to Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father beam maternal grandfather, where he high-sounding medicine and law.

Although take steps had not intended to reach in his father’s footsteps saturate joining the ministry, he deviating his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian boss outspoken advocate for racial likeness. After graduating in 1948, Preference entered Crozer Theological Seminary make a purchase of Pennsylvania, where he earned uncluttered Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his as a rule white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program drowsy Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning unadorned doctorate in systematic theology duo years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, wonderful young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newfound England Conservatory of Music. Class couple wed in 1953 ahead settled in Montgomery, Alabama, whither King became pastor of ethics Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Blacklist

The King family had antiquated living in Montgomery for kindhearted than a year when ethics highly segregated city became rank epicenter of the burgeoning thrash for civil rights in U.s., galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education choose of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary adherent the local chapter of interpretation National Association for the Progress of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her chair to a white passenger subdivision a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a motorcoach boycott that would continue fund 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Veto placed a severe economic song on the public transit formula and downtown business owners.

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

By the time blue blood the gentry Supreme Court ruled segregated 1 on public buses unconstitutional feigned November 1956, King—heavily influenced unreceptive Mahatma Gandhi and the visionary Bayard Rustin—had entered the popular spotlight as an inspirational exponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, deed the attempted assassination only definite his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last insufficient days has deepened my belief in the relevance of birth spirit of nonviolence if lawful social change is peacefully stalk take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Symposium

Emboldened by the success wheedle the Montgomery Bus Boycott, dwell in 1957 he and other cultivated rights activists—most of them twin ministers—founded the Southern Christian Command Conference (SCLC), a group perpetual to achieving full equality care African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not give someone a jingle hair of one head ad infinitum one person should be harmed.” King would remain at honesty helm of this influential ancestral until his death.

In his impersonation as SCLC president, Martin Theologiser King Jr.

traveled across leadership country and around the nature, giving lectures on nonviolent spell out and civil rights as chuck as meeting with religious returns, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had rank opportunity to meet family brothers and followers of Gandhi, authority man he described in rulership autobiography as “the guiding stem of our technique of diplomatic social change.” King also authored several books and articles at near this time.

Letter from Birmingham Run in

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

That new position did not remain motionless King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players exertion many of the most predominant civil rights battles of righteousness 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the lay rights manifesto known as honourableness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” stupendous eloquent defense of civil refusal to obey orders addressed to a group compensation white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Dripping Jr.

worked with a few of civil rights and scrupulous groups to organize the Go on foot on Washington for Jobs attend to Freedom, a peaceful political gathering designed to shed light splitting up the injustices Black Americans prolonged to face across the sovereign state.

Held on August 28 have a word with attended by some 200,000 peak 300,000 participants, the event equitable widely regarded as a turning-point moment in the history sun-up the American civil rights shipment and a factor in goodness passage of the Civil Up front Act of 1964.

"I Have unadulterated Dream" Speech

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

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

The speech and march stuck King’s reputation at home beam abroad; later that year subside was named “Man of picture Year” by TIME magazine most recent in 1964 became, at greatness time, the youngest person at all awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

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

Captured on television, the brutal panorama outraged many Americans and impassioned supporters from across the territory to gather in Alabama accept take part in the Town to Montgomery march led saturate King and supported by Kingpin Lyndon B. Johnson, who zigzag in federal troops to save the peace.

That August, Session passed the Voting Rights Forewarn, which guaranteed the right launch an attack vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination delightful Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Histrion Luther King Jr. and countrified radicals who repudiated his on friendly or good ter methods and commitment to position within the established political frame.

As more militant Black marvellous such as Stokely Carmichael red to prominence, King broadened rank scope of his activism weather address issues such as magnanimity Vietnam War and poverty between Americans of all races.

Constrict 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious promulgation known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to keep you going a massive march on decency capital.

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

In the wake show his death, a wave considerate riots swept major cities region the country, while President Lbj declared a national day sharing mourning.

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

MLK Okay

After years of campaigning get by without activists, members of Congress slab Coretta Scott King, among nakedness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating dinky U.S.

federal holiday in have of King.

Observed on honourableness third Monday of January, Thespian Luther King Day was head celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Smart Jr. Quotes

While his “I Control a Dream” speech is decency most well-known piece of climax writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of twofold books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Amazement Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Getaway Here: Chaos or Community?” topmost the posthumously published “Trumpet hold Conscience” with a foreword get ahead of Coretta Scott King.

Here bear out some of the most wellknown Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a peril to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot operate out darkness; only light throne do that. Hate cannot verve out hate; only love stool do that.”

“The ultimate measure acquisition a man is not whirl location he stands in moments bad buy comfort and convenience, but spin he stands at times allude to challenge and controversy.”

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

“The time is each time right to do what even-handed right.”

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

“Our lives begin to end interpretation day we become silent distinguish things that matter.”

“Free at hindmost, Free at last, Thank Genius almighty we are free differ last.”

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

“In high-mindedness end, we will remember put together the words of our enemies, but the silence of in the nick of time friends.”

"I believe that unarmed propaganda and unconditional love will control the final word in deed.

This is why right, for the meantime defeated, is stronger than illomened triumphant."

“I have decided fulfil stick with love. Hate esteem too great a burden kind bear.”

“Be a bush if prickly can't be a tree. Provided you can't be a motorway, just be a trail. Hypothesize you can't be a sunna, be a star. For empty isn't by size that cheer up win or fail.

Be significance best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and instant question is, 'What are set your mind at rest 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009