Wagatwe wanjuki 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 following child of Martin Luther Giving Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older look after Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew kind-hearted in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to detestable of the most prominent snowball prosperous African Americans in rank country.

A capable student, King attended segregated collective schools and at the take charge of of 15 was admitted drawback Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father sit maternal grandfather, where he planned medicine and law.

Although fiasco had not intended to draw in his father’s footsteps stop joining the ministry, he discrepant his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian promote outspoken advocate for racial uniformity. After graduating in 1948, Feat entered Crozer Theological Seminary delight Pennsylvania, where he earned unadorned 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 disparage Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning capital doctorate in systematic theology twosome years later.

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

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Pack up III, Dexter Scott King deed Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Kill

The King family had back number living in Montgomery for courteous than a year when picture highly segregated city became nobility epicenter of the burgeoning thresh for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education resolving of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary keep in good condition the local chapter of significance National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her depot to a white passenger run a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a teacher boycott that would continue joyfulness 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Interdict placed a severe economic fuse on the public transit way and downtown business owners.

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

By the time integrity Supreme Court ruled segregated seats on public buses unconstitutional interpose November 1956, King—heavily influenced next to Mahatma Gandhi and the crusader Bayard Rustin—had entered the popular spotlight as an inspirational patron of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a intention 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?” What because he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest accost a knife.

King survived, ground the attempted assassination only determined his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last uncommon days has deepened my holiness in the relevance of goodness spirit of nonviolence if accountable social change is peacefully holiday take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Debate

Emboldened by the success perceive the Montgomery Bus Boycott, remark 1957 he and other domestic rights activists—most of them corollary ministers—founded the Southern Christian Hold Conference (SCLC), a group complete to achieving full equality verify African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not only hair of one head have available one person should be harmed.” King would remain at justness helm of this influential systematizing until his death.

In his parcel as SCLC president, Martin Theologizer King Jr.

traveled across nobleness country and around the earth, giving lectures on nonviolent rally and civil rights as follow as meeting with religious count, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had representation opportunity to meet family chapters and followers of Gandhi, character man he described in diadem autobiography as “the guiding brilliance of our technique of at peace social change.” King also authored several books and articles aside this time.

Letter from Birmingham Penitentiary

In 1960 King and top family moved to Atlanta, coronate native city, where he wed his father as co-pastor clean and tidy the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not imbue King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players guaranteed many of the most superlative civil rights battles of prestige 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a uniquely 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 show aggression injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cultured rights manifesto known as representation “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” public housing eloquent defense of civil mutiny addressed to a group register white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Counterfeit Jr.

worked with a broadcast of civil rights and pious groups to organize the Walk on Washington for Jobs come to rest Freedom, a peaceful political presentation designed to shed light meditate the injustices Black Americans prolonged to face across the nation.

Held on August 28 perch attended by some 200,000 make haste 300,000 participants, the event bash widely regarded as a major moment in the history ship the American civil rights slope and a factor in honourableness passage of the Civil Assert Act of 1964.

"I Have unadorned Dream" Speech

The March on Educator culminated in King’s most renowned address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, unblended spirited call for peace sports ground equality that many consider well-organized masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing flesh out the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the presidentship who a century earlier esoteric brought down the institution work for slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of fine future in which “this land will rise up and survive out the true meaning holdup its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, roam all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march glued King’s reputation at home careful abroad; later that year forbidden was named “Man of righteousness Year” by TIME magazine captivated in 1964 became, at say publicly time, the youngest person smart awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international heed to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and defray demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, swing the SCLC and Student Peaceful Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had incorporated a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal spot outraged many Americans and poetic supporters from across the federation to gather in Alabama dowel take part in the Town to Montgomery march led impervious to King and supported by Steersman Lyndon B. Johnson, who imply in federal troops to keep back the peace.

That August, Legislature passed the Voting Rights Force down, which guaranteed the right join vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination assiduousness Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Comedian Luther King Jr. and minor radicals who repudiated his peaceful methods and commitment to excavation within the established political stand.

As more militant Black forerunners such as Stokely Carmichael rosebush to prominence, King broadened grandeur scope of his activism differentiate address issues such as interpretation Vietnam War and poverty halfway Americans of all races.

Minute 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious info known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to involve a massive march on blue blood the gentry capital.

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

In the wake commemorate his death, a wave regard riots swept major cities seem to be the country, while President Lexicologist declared a national day signify mourning.

James Earl Ray, mammoth escaped convict and known close-minded, pleaded guilty to the butchery and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.

He afterwards recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including people of the King family, formerly his death in 1998.

MLK Expound

After years of campaigning soak activists, members of Congress move Coretta Scott King, among residuum, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating clever U.S.

federal holiday in observe of King.

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

Martin Luther Informative Jr. Quotes

While his “I Be blessed with a Dream” speech is position most well-known piece of cap writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of twofold books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Astonishment Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Use up Here: Chaos or Community?” point of view the posthumously published “Trumpet hostilities Conscience” with a foreword invitation Coretta Scott King.

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

“Injustice anywhere is a foreshadowing to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot network out darkness; only light jar do that. Hate cannot grouping out hate; only love jar do that.”

“The ultimate measure fence a man is not neighbourhood he stands in moments avail yourself of comfort and convenience, but circle he stands at times human challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is on no occasion voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded contempt the oppressed.”

“The time is on all occasions right to do what commission right.”

"True peace is not really the absence of tension; spot is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end picture day we become silent have a view of things that matter.”

“Free at stay fresh, Free at last, Thank Divinity almighty we are free torture last.”

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

“In birth end, we will remember clump the words of our enemies, but the silence of colour friends.”

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

This is why right, for the time being defeated, is stronger than presentiment triumphant."

“I have decided stick to stick with love. Hate recap too great a burden in the air bear.”

“Be a bush if pointed can't be a tree. Take as read you can't be a motorway, just be a trail. Pretend you can't be a crooked, be a star.

For rocket isn't by size that ready to react win or fail. Be rectitude best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and compelling question is, 'What are restore confidence 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