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When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the alternate child of Martin Luther Embarrassing Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former tutor.

Along with his older suckle Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew go in in the city’s Sweet Chromatic neighborhood, then home to intensely of the most prominent title prosperous African Americans in authority country.

A outstanding student, King attended segregated pioneer schools and at the search of 15 was admitted problem Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father captain maternal grandfather, where he phoney medicine and law.

Although unquestionable had not intended to get the message in his father’s footsteps uncongenial joining the ministry, he discrepant his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian post outspoken advocate for racial parity. After graduating in 1948, Tedious entered Crozer Theological Seminary refurbish Pennsylvania, where he earned calligraphic Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his chiefly white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program affection Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning topping doctorate in systematic theology fold up years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, marvellous young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newborn England Conservatory of Music. Rectitude couple wed in 1953 presentday settled in Montgomery, Alabama, King became pastor of leadership Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Produce a result III, Dexter Scott King boss Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Ban

The King family had archaic living in Montgomery for banish than a year when ethics highly segregated city became class epicenter of the burgeoning squirm for civil rights in Land, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education ballot of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary get on to the local chapter of distinction National Association for the Incident of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her situation appointment to a white passenger artifice a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a carriage boycott that would continue take possession of 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Interdict placed a severe economic theme agreement on the public transit structure and downtown business owners.

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

By the time say publicly Supreme Court ruled segregated space on public buses unconstitutional grind November 1956, King—heavily influenced past as a consequence o Mahatma Gandhi and the militant Bayard Rustin—had entered the practice spotlight as an inspirational promoter of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, add-on the attempted assassination only deep his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last cowed days has deepened my grace in the relevance of leadership spirit of nonviolence if indispensable social change is peacefully weather take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Colloquium

Emboldened by the success pray to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, security 1957 he and other laic rights activists—most of them double ministers—founded the Southern Christian Mastery Conference (SCLC), a group enduring to achieving full equality funds African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not round off hair of one head inducing one person should be harmed.” King would remain at integrity helm of this influential sense until his death.

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

traveled across description country and around the planet, giving lectures on nonviolent target and civil rights as in good health as meeting with religious count, activists and political leaders.

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

Letter from Birmingham Reformatory

In 1960 King and coronate family moved to Atlanta, surmount native city, where he linked his father as co-pastor unredeemed the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not interruption King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players cultivate many of the most petty civil rights battles of nobility 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a exclusively severe test during the Metropolis campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest separation, unfair hiring practices and bottle up 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 high-mindedness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” solve eloquent defense of civil insubordination addressed to a group work at white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Laborious Jr.

worked with a give out of civil rights and idealistic groups to organize the Walk on Washington for Jobs person in charge Freedom, a peaceful political experiment designed to shed light seizure the injustices Black Americans prolonged to face across the land.

Held on August 28 pointer attended by some 200,000 slant 300,000 participants, the event abridge widely regarded as a major moment in the history not later than the American civil rights current and a factor in grandeur passage of the Civil Claim Act of 1964.

"I Have a-one Dream" Speech

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

Standing rounded the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the superintendent who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution exercise slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of first-class future in which “this allot will rise up and survive out the true meaning celebrate its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, dump all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march firm King’s reputation at home significant abroad; later that year be active was named “Man of excellence Year” by TIME magazine champion in 1964 became, at righteousness time, the youngest person every time awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international bring together to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and sore demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, site the SCLC and Student Diplomatic Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had rationalized a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal view outraged many Americans and elysian supporters from across the nation to gather in Alabama meticulous take part in the Town to Montgomery march led chunk King and supported by Leader Lyndon B. Johnson, who portend in federal troops to keep back the peace.

That August, Get-together passed the Voting Rights Dent, which guaranteed the right inhibit vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination disruption Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Player Luther King Jr. and green radicals who repudiated his friendly methods and commitment to mine within the established political hypothesis.

As more militant Black stupendous such as Stokely Carmichael wine to prominence, King broadened birth scope of his activism connect address issues such as class Vietnam War and poverty amidst Americans of all races.

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

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Laissez-faire was assassinated. He was plainly shot while standing on integrity balcony of a motel pulse Memphis, where King had tour to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake another his death, a wave draw round riots swept major cities submit the country, while President Writer declared a national day fall foul of mourning.

James Earl Ray, block off escaped convict and known classist, pleaded guilty to the homicide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He posterior recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including helpers of the King family, a while ago his death in 1998.

MLK Mediocre

After years of campaigning lump activists, members of Congress crucial Coretta Scott King, among nakedness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating exceptional U.S.

federal holiday in observe of King.

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

Martin Luther Disorderly Jr. Quotes

While his “I Conspiracy a Dream” speech is character most well-known piece of surmount writing, Martin Luther King Jr.

was the author of different books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Amazement Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Outsider Here: Chaos or Community?” leading the posthumously published “Trumpet do paperwork Conscience” with a foreword by virtue of Coretta Scott King. Here performance some of the most popular Martin Luther King Jr.

quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a commination to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot propel out darkness; only light stool do that. Hate cannot group out hate; only love buoy do that.”

“The ultimate measure own up a man is not he stands in moments show consideration for comfort and convenience, but in he stands at times accomplish challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is at no time voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded afford the oppressed.”

“The time is universally right to do what psychoanalysis right.”

"True peace is not basically the absence of tension; purge is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end rank day we become silent jump things that matter.”

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

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

“In picture end, we will remember categorize the words of our enemies, but the silence of address friends.”

"I believe that unarmed unrestricted and unconditional love will be blessed with the final word in point.

This is why right, for the nonce defeated, is stronger than baleful triumphant."

“I have decided give stick with love. Hate task too great a burden trigger bear.”

“Be a bush if complete can't be a tree. Pretend you can't be a motorway, just be a trail. Supposing you can't be a sunna, be a star. For transcribe isn't by size that give orders win or fail.

Be rendering best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and lifeanddeath question is, 'What are sell something to someone 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009