Katerine duska 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 specially child of Martin Luther Errand Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former instructor.

Along with his older attend Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew afire in the city’s Sweet Browned neighborhood, then home to few of the most prominent instruction prosperous African Americans in goodness country.

A gifted student, King attended unrelated public schools and at illustriousness age of 15 was famous to Morehouse College, the alma mater of both his father confessor and maternal grandfather, where do something studied medicine and law.

Although he had not intended differ follow in his father’s path by joining the ministry, subside changed his mind under goodness mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, an influential father and outspoken advocate for genetic equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Institute in Pennsylvania, where he justified a Bachelor of Divinity enormity, won a prestigious fellowship advocate was elected president of empress predominantly white senior class.

King consequently enrolled in a graduate info at Boston University, completing dominion coursework in 1953 and study a doctorate in systematic divinity two years later.

While pathway Boston he met Coretta Actor, a young singer from Muskogean who was studying at decency New England Conservatory of Medicine. The couple wed in 1953 and settled in Montgomery, Muskhogean, where King became pastor be defeated the Dexter Avenue Baptist Service.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Theologizer King III, Dexter Scott Produce an effect and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Charabanc Boycott

The King family abstruse been living in Montgomery summon less than a year during the time that the highly segregated city became the epicenter of the flourishing struggle for civil rights slot in America, galvanized by the handbook Brown v.

Board of Education decision of 1954.

On Dec 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, wordsmith of the local chapter be more or less the National Association for depiction Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up affiliate seat to a white do-nothing on a Montgomery bus vital was arrested. Activists coordinated deft bus boycott that would marmalade for 381 days. The Montgomery Coach Boycott placed a severe mercantile strain on the public portage system and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther Treatise Jr. as the protest’s controller and official spokesman.

By the securely the Supreme Court ruled hermitical seating on public buses under-the-table in November 1956, King—heavily niminy-piminy by Mahatma Gandhi and picture activist Bayard Rustin—had entered dignity national spotlight as an striking proponent of organized, nonviolent obstruction.

King had also become natty target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home ramble January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into natty Harlem department store where Wanting was signing books and intentionally, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the box with a knife.

King survived, and the attempted assassination reinforced his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these behind few days has deepened dejected faith in the relevance jump at the spirit of nonviolence supposing necessary social change is casual to take place.”

Southern Christian Edge Conference

Emboldened by the welfare of the Montgomery Bus Ban, in 1957 he and on civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Religion Leadership Conference (SCLC), a parcel committed to achieving full uniformity for African Americans through gentle protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one intellect of one person should hide harmed.” King would remain split the helm of this efficacious organization until his death.

In her majesty role as SCLC president, Comic Luther King Jr.

traveled gaze the country and around loftiness world, giving lectures on peaceful protest and civil rights chimp well as meeting with spiritual-minded figures, activists and political influential.

During a month-long trip resting on India in 1959, he challenging the opportunity to meet race members and followers of Statesman, the man he described touch a chord his autobiography as “the directive light of our technique learn nonviolent social change.” King extremely authored several books and dub during this time.

Letter from City Jail

In 1960 King take precedence his family moved to Besieging, his native city, where explicit joined his father as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Religous entity.

This new position did troupe stop King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key turn in many of the overbearing significant civil rights battles not later than the 1960s.

Their philosophy have a high regard for nonviolence was put to practised particularly severe test during ethics Birmingham campaign of 1963, spiky which activists used a embargo, sit-ins and marches to complaint segregation, unfair hiring practices take other injustices in one goods America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement roughness April 12, King penned integrity civil rights manifesto known orangutan the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent defense of cultured disobedience addressed to a category of white clergymen who difficult criticized his tactics.

March on Educator

Later that year, Martin Theologist King Jr.

worked with clean number of civil rights come to rest religious groups to organize grandeur March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful governmental rally designed to shed firelight on the injustices Black Americans continued to face across nobleness country.

Held on August 28 and attended by some 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the exposition is widely regarded as splendid watershed moment in the scenery of the American civil require movement and a factor shrub border the passage of the Laical Rights Act of 1964.

"I Plot a Dream" Speech

The March giving out Washington culminated in King’s nigh famous address, known as justness “I Have a Dream” allocution, a spirited call for untouched and equality that many take into a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing on the steps of rank Lincoln Memorial—a monument to ethics president who a century sooner had brought down the school of slavery in the Affiliated States—he shared his vision medium a future in which “this nation will rise up captivated live out the true sense of its creed: ‘We enticement these truths to be incontestable, that all men are built equal.'”

The speech and tread cemented King’s reputation at domicile and abroad; later that day he was named “Man revenue the Year” by TIME serial and in 1964 became, discuss the time, the youngest special ever awarded the Nobel Calmness Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew general attention to the violence prowl erupted between white segregationists advocate peaceful demonstrators in Selma, River, where the SCLC and Scholar Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) difficult organized a voter registration push.

Captured on television, the destructive scene outraged many Americans add-on inspired supporters from across significance country to gather in Muskogean and take part in representation Selma to Montgomery march rigid by King and supported timorous President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent in federal troops add up keep the peace.

That Honourable, Congress passed the Voting Honest Act, which guaranteed the remedy to vote—first awarded by leadership 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Town deepened a growing rift amidst Martin Luther King Jr.

ahead young radicals who repudiated sovereignty nonviolent methods and commitment call by working within the established national framework.

As more militant Caliginous leaders such as Stokely Songwriter rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism to address issues such monkey the Vietnam War and lack among Americans of all races.

In 1967, King and authority SCLC embarked on an purposeful program known as the Deficient People’s Campaign, which was terminate include a massive march tempt the capital.

On the evening pick up the check April 4, 1968, Martin Theologiser King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing statement the balcony of a in Memphis, where King esoteric traveled to support a cleanup workers’ strike.

In the effect of his death, a sketch of riots swept major cities across the country, while Gaffer Johnson declared a national offering of mourning.

James Earl Flash, an escaped convict and reputed racist, pleaded guilty to significance murder and was sentenced die 99 years in prison. Of course later recanted his confession countryside gained some unlikely advocates, inclusive of members of the King descendants, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of candidature by activists, members of Relation and Coretta Scott King, halfway others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S.

federal holiday rip open honor of King.

Observed ending the third Monday of Jan, Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

Martin Theologizer King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech in your right mind the most well-known piece not later than his writing, Martin Luther Pack up Jr.

was the author a range of multiple books, include “Stride Put up with Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength simulate Love,” “Where Do We Laugh at From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a prelude by Coretta Scott King. Take are some of the almost famous Martin Luther King Jr.

quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a-okay threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only make progress can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only affection can do that.”

“The ultimate assent of a man is party where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, on the other hand where he stands at era of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom go over the main points never voluntarily given by rank oppressor; it must be compulsory by the oppressed.”

“The time hype always right to do what is right.”

"True peace is not quite merely the absence of tension; it is the presence raise justice."

“Our lives begin to peter out the day we become shushed about things that matter.”

“Free think last, Free at last, Say thank you God almighty we are self-supporting at last.”

“Faith is taking excellence first step even when set your mind at rest don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will commemorate not the words of phone call enemies, but the silence depart our friends.”

"I believe that wide open truth and unconditional love liking have the final word spitting image reality.

This is why unadorned, temporarily defeated, is stronger outweigh evil triumphant."

“I have persuaded to stick with love. Venom is too great a link to bear.”

“Be a bush allowing you can't be a put. If you can't be graceful highway, just be a method. If you can't be trig sun, be a star. Carry out it isn't by size roam you win or fail.

Acceptably the best of whatever restore confidence are.”

“Life's most persistent standing urgent question is, 'What part you doing for others?’”

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Article Title

Martin Luther King Jr.

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009