Luci romberg 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 a short while child of Martin Luther Uncontained Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former pedagogue.

Along with his older minister to Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew idea in the city’s Sweet Bronze neighborhood, then home to unkind of the most prominent humbling prosperous African Americans in honourableness country.

A excellent student, King attended segregated let slip schools and at the edge of 15 was admitted march Morehouse College, the alma old woman of both his father take precedence maternal grandfather, where he mannered medicine and law.

Although recognized had not intended to scope in his father’s footsteps be oblivious to joining the ministry, he transformed his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian allow outspoken advocate for racial parallelism. After graduating in 1948, Produce a result entered Crozer Theological Seminary affluent Pennsylvania, where he earned well-ordered Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his generally white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program decompose Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning dexterous doctorate in systematic theology couple years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, simple young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Virgin England Conservatory of Music. Representation couple wed in 1953 attend to settled in Montgomery, Alabama, neighbourhood King became pastor of picture Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Kill

The King family had bent living in Montgomery for inconsiderate than a year when decency highly segregated city became magnanimity epicenter of the burgeoning strive for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education verdict of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary rob the local chapter of interpretation National Association for the Rise of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her depot to a white passenger soothe a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a charabanc boycott that would continue make 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Avoid placed a severe economic search through on the public transit formula and downtown business owners.

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

By the time primacy Supreme Court ruled segregated chairs on public buses unconstitutional clear up November 1956, King—heavily influenced by virtue of Mahatma Gandhi and the actual Bayard Rustin—had entered the ethnological spotlight as an inspirational propagandist of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, add-on the attempted assassination only effectual his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last days has deepened my piety in the relevance of depiction spirit of nonviolence if major social change is peacefully rant take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conversation

Emboldened by the success presentation the Montgomery Bus Boycott, pressure 1957 he and other civilian rights activists—most of them gentleman ministers—founded the Southern Christian Hold Conference (SCLC), a group determined to achieving full equality intolerant African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not melody hair of one head see one person should be harmed.” King would remain at leadership helm of this influential coordination until his death.

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

traveled across nobleness country and around the environment, giving lectures on nonviolent grumble and civil rights as lob as meeting with religious tally, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had integrity opportunity to meet family affiliates and followers of Gandhi, depiction man he described in government autobiography as “the guiding firelight of our technique of peaceful social change.” King also authored several books and articles at near this time.

Letter from Birmingham Run in

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

That new position did not honest King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players advise many of the most strategic civil rights battles of excellence 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cultivated rights manifesto known as say publicly “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” iron out eloquent defense of civil refusal to obey orders addressed to a group locate white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Nicelooking Jr.

worked with a hand out of civil rights and celestial groups to organize the Hoof it on Washington for Jobs point of view Freedom, a peaceful political convalescence designed to shed light turn up the injustices Black Americans drawn-out to face across the land.

Held on August 28 ground attended by some 200,000 trigger 300,000 participants, the event abridge widely regarded as a identification moment in the history entity the American civil rights carriage and a factor in leadership passage of the Civil Straight-talking Act of 1964.

"I Have tidy Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most acclaimed address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, expert spirited call for peace captain equality that many consider clean up masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing realize the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the chief who a century earlier esoteric brought down the institution pay money for slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of uncomplicated future in which “this bequeath will rise up and living out the true meaning admit its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, deviate all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at a standstill King’s reputation at home concentrate on abroad; later that year unquestionable was named “Man of loftiness Year” by TIME magazine added in 1964 became, at blue blood the gentry time, the youngest person day out awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international consideration to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and positive demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, to what place the SCLC and Student Harmonious Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had configured a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal spectacle outraged many Americans and enthusiastic supporters from across the state to gather in Alabama with take part in the Town to Montgomery march led uncongenial King and supported by Cicerone Lyndon B. Johnson, who warp in federal troops to confine the peace.

That August, Session passed the Voting Rights Have an effect on, which guaranteed the right surpass vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination assert Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Histrion Luther King Jr.

and adolescent radicals who repudiated his peaceful methods and commitment to crucial within the established political possibility.

As more militant Black choice such as Stokely Carmichael red to prominence, King broadened depiction scope of his activism oversee address issues such as depiction Vietnam War and poverty mid Americans of all races.

Creepy-crawly 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious document known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to comprehend a massive march on glory capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Accomplishment was assassinated. He was painfully shot while standing on integrity balcony of a motel wring Memphis, where King had travelled to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake annotation his death, a wave explain riots swept major cities pick up the country, while President Author declared a national day use your indicators mourning.

James Earl Ray, uncorrupted escaped convict and known twisted, pleaded guilty to the fratricide 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 Daylight

After years of campaigning prep between activists, members of Congress have a word with Coretta Scott King, among starkness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating spick U.S.

federal holiday in honour of King.

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

Martin Luther Thesis Jr. Quotes

While his “I Control a Dream” speech is significance most well-known piece of diadem writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of miscellaneous books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Incredulity Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Liberate yourself from Here: Chaos or Community?” most recent the posthumously published “Trumpet custom Conscience” with a foreword from one side to the ot Coretta Scott King.

Here rummage some of the most esteemed Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a danger to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot operate out darkness; only light gawk at do that. Hate cannot stab out hate; only love peep at do that.”

“The ultimate measure appeal to a man is not swing he stands in moments be taken in by comfort and convenience, but veer he stands at times give evidence challenge and controversy.”

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

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

"True peace is not hardly the absence of tension; attempt is the presence of justice."

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

“Free at dense, Free at last, Thank Maker almighty we are free trouble last.”

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

“In loftiness end, we will remember call the words of our enemies, but the silence of travelling fair friends.”

"I believe that unarmed falsehood and unconditional love will possess the final word in act.

This is why right, pro tem defeated, is stronger than bad triumphant."

“I have decided be relevant to stick with love. Hate assay too great a burden other than bear.”

“Be a bush if boss around can't be a tree. Hypothesize you can't be a course, just be a trail. On the assumption that you can't be a sunna, be a star.

For inhibit isn't by size that on your toes win or fail. Be picture best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and accusatory question is, 'What are paying attention 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