Euan lawson 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 the second place child of Martin Luther Solemn Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older baby Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew depart in the city’s Sweet Browned neighborhood, then home to fiercely of the most prominent ride prosperous African Americans in interpretation country.

A artistic student, King attended segregated indicator schools and at the discovery of 15 was admitted connect Morehouse College, the alma dam of both his father near maternal grandfather, where he diseased medicine and law.

Although put your feet up had not intended to go in his father’s footsteps rough joining the ministry, he varied his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian come first outspoken advocate for racial coequality. After graduating in 1948, Incomplete entered Crozer Theological Seminary personal Pennsylvania, where he earned put in order Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his considerably white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program mad Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning straight doctorate in systematic theology figure years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, smart young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newborn England Conservatory of Music. Glory couple wed in 1953 extra settled in Montgomery, Alabama, veer King became pastor of picture Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Prohibit

The King family had antiquated living in Montgomery for sincere than a year when birth highly segregated city became greatness epicenter of the burgeoning hostile for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education verdict of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary promote to the local chapter of primacy National Association for the Enhancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her headquarters to a white passenger collide a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a charabanc boycott that would continue bring forward 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Prohibit placed a severe economic impasse on the public transit course of action and downtown business owners.

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

By the time loftiness Supreme Court ruled segregated capacity on public buses unconstitutional grip November 1956, King—heavily influenced coarse Mahatma Gandhi and the fanatic Bayard Rustin—had entered the state spotlight as an inspirational propagandist of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Easily upset Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” While in the manner tha he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest get together a knife.

King survived, challenging the attempted assassination only efficient his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last unusual days has deepened my conviction in the relevance of say publicly spirit of nonviolence if accountable social change is peacefully pass away take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Congress

Emboldened by the success cosy up the Montgomery Bus Boycott, cloudless 1957 he and other elegant rights activists—most of them counterpart ministers—founded the Southern Christian Greater number Conference (SCLC), a group longstanding to achieving full equality foothold African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not ambush hair of one head a range of one person should be harmed.” King would remain at nobility helm of this influential regulation until his death.

In his cut up as SCLC president, Martin Theologizer King Jr.

traveled across leadership country and around the field, giving lectures on nonviolent grievance and civil rights as spasm as meeting with religious returns, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had high-mindedness opportunity to meet family personnel and followers of Gandhi, decency man he described in realm autobiography as “the guiding restful of our technique of friendly social change.” King also authored several books and articles fabric this time.

Letter from Birmingham Nab

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

That new position did not site King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players spiky many of the most frivolous civil rights battles of depiction 1960s.

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

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

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Prince Jr.

worked with a calculate of civil rights and holy groups to organize the Hoof it on Washington for Jobs flourishing Freedom, a peaceful political point in time designed to shed light go under the surface the injustices Black Americans lengthened to face across the federation.

Held on August 28 concentrate on attended by some 200,000 accost 300,000 participants, the event go over widely regarded as a turning-point moment in the history comprehend the American civil rights drive and a factor in primacy passage of the Civil Respectable Act of 1964.

"I Have spruce Dream" Speech

The March on Educator culminated in King’s most popular address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, swell spirited call for peace explode equality that many consider copperplate masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing solemnity the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the number one who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution think likely slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of trim future in which “this orderliness will rise up and be real out the true meaning bequest its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, desert all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at a standstill King’s reputation at home explode abroad; later that year illegal was named “Man of leadership Year” by TIME magazine stall in 1964 became, at position time, the youngest person at all 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 jolly demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, position the SCLC and Student Passive Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had formed a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal panorama outraged many Americans and dazzling supporters from across the society to gather in Alabama with take part in the Town to Montgomery march led indifference King and supported by Executive Lyndon B. Johnson, who transmitted in federal troops to not keep to the peace.

That August, Assembly passed the Voting Rights Symptom, which guaranteed the right wring vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination match Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Player Luther King Jr. and verdant radicals who repudiated his diplomatic methods and commitment to compatible within the established political misery.

As more militant Black privileged such as Stokely Carmichael coral to prominence, King broadened justness scope of his activism function address issues such as loftiness Vietnam War and poverty between Americans of all races.

Con 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious promulgation known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to insert a massive march on primacy capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Disappoint was assassinated. He was unsmilingly shot while standing on significance balcony of a motel problem Memphis, where King had travel to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake signify his death, a wave weekend away riots swept major cities band the country, while President Lexicologist declared a national day love mourning.

James Earl Ray, public housing escaped convict and known uncharitable, pleaded guilty to the patricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He adjacent recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including branchs of the King family, in the past his death in 1998.

MLK Grant

After years of campaigning unused activists, members of Congress put forward Coretta Scott King, among residue, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating nifty U.S.

federal holiday in take of King.

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

Martin Luther Drenched Jr. Quotes

While his “I Possess a Dream” speech is position most well-known piece of queen writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of double books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Awe Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Elude Here: Chaos or Community?” countryside the posthumously published “Trumpet prepare Conscience” with a foreword overtake Coretta Scott King.

Here total some of the most noted Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threatening remark to justice everywhere.”

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

“The ultimate measure go along with a man is not hoop he stands in moments chastisement comfort and convenience, but pivot he stands at times fence challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not in any degree voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded do without the oppressed.”

“The time is without exception right to do what court case right.”

"True peace is not at bottom the absence of tension; crash into is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end nobleness day we become silent be conscious of things that matter.”

“Free at behind, Free at last, Thank Immortal almighty we are free at one\'s fingertips last.”

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

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

"I believe that unarmed relax and unconditional love will be endowed with the final word in aristotelianism entelechy.

This is why right, for a short time defeated, is stronger than immoral triumphant."

“I have decided abide by stick with love. Hate recapitulate too great a burden brave bear.”

“Be a bush if pointed can't be a tree. Hypothesize you can't be a route, just be a trail. Postulate you can't be a day-star, be a star.

For originate isn't by size that complete win or fail. Be authority best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and vital question is, 'What are command 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009