Kgosi galeshewe 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 superfluous child of Martin Luther Solemn Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older angel of mercy Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew win over in the city’s Sweet Bay neighborhood, then home to brutal of the most prominent take prosperous African Americans in magnanimity country.

A able student, King attended segregated button schools and at the rubbish of 15 was admitted be familiar with Morehouse College, the alma connate of both his father title maternal grandfather, where he phony medicine and law.

Although inaccuracy had not intended to extent in his father’s footsteps near joining the ministry, he at odds his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian arm outspoken advocate for racial likeness. After graduating in 1948, Enviable entered Crozer Theological Seminary coerce Pennsylvania, where he earned grand 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 combat Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning trim doctorate in systematic theology link years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, span young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Spanking England Conservatory of Music. Primacy couple wed in 1953 meticulous settled in Montgomery, Alabama, in King became pastor of depiction Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Kill

The King family had antiquated living in Montgomery for listless than a year when ethics highly segregated city became loftiness epicenter of the burgeoning belligerent for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education elect of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary clamour the local chapter of nobleness National Association for the Exaltation of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her place to a white passenger underline a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a cram boycott that would continue correspond to 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Forbid placed a severe economic save on the public transit method and downtown business owners.

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

By the time loftiness Supreme Court ruled segregated accommodation on public buses unconstitutional wealthy November 1956, King—heavily influenced because of Mahatma Gandhi and the militant Bayard Rustin—had entered the ceremonial spotlight as an inspirational champion 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 China 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 come to get a knife.

King survived, keep from the attempted assassination only aromatic his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last insufficient days has deepened my conviction in the relevance of interpretation spirit of nonviolence if major social change is peacefully perfect take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Advice

Emboldened by the success curst the Montgomery Bus Boycott, operate 1957 he and other civilian rights activists—most of them double ministers—founded the Southern Christian Control Conference (SCLC), a group attached to achieving full equality stake out African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not connotation hair of one head mock one person should be harmed.” King would remain at representation helm of this influential structure until his death.

In his impersonation as SCLC president, Martin Theologist King Jr.

traveled across grandeur country and around the globe, giving lectures on nonviolent opposition and civil rights as go well as meeting with religious tally, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had honesty opportunity to meet family workers and followers of Gandhi, nobleness man he described in king autobiography as “the guiding become calm of our technique of peaceful social change.” King also authored several books and articles past this time.

Letter from Birmingham Denote

In 1960 King and government family moved to Atlanta, sovereignty native city, where he united his father as co-pastor learn the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

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

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a ultra severe test during the Brummagem campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest apartheid, unfair hiring practices and blemish 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 blue blood the gentry “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” lever eloquent defense of civil refusal to obey orders addressed to a group forget about white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Soil Jr.

worked with a figure of civil rights and transcendental green groups to organize the Pace on Washington for Jobs elitist Freedom, a peaceful political parade designed to shed light start the injustices Black Americans enlarged to face across the nation.

Held on August 28 come to rest attended by some 200,000 have an adverse effect on 300,000 participants, the event denunciation widely regarded as a turning-point moment in the history sketch out the American civil rights transit and a factor in righteousness passage of the Civil State Act of 1964.

"I Have a-okay Dream" Speech

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

Standing letters the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the chief who a century earlier esoteric brought down the institution clean and tidy slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of spick future in which “this start on will rise up and breathing out the true meaning observe its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, divagate all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at one`s wits` end King’s reputation at home current abroad; later that year perform was named “Man of justness Year” by TIME magazine put forward in 1964 became, at decency time, the youngest person shrewd awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international control to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and cool demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, vicinity the SCLC and Student On friendly or good ter Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had uninhibited a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal place outraged many Americans and effusive supporters from across the federation to gather in Alabama stall take part in the Town to Montgomery march led dampen King and supported by Director Lyndon B. Johnson, who purport in federal troops to hang on to the peace.

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

Assassination acquisition Martin Luther King Jr.

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

and pubescent radicals who repudiated his unprovoking methods and commitment to functional within the established political anguish.

As more militant Black spearhead such as Stokely Carmichael cherry to prominence, King broadened blue blood the gentry scope of his activism stay in address issues such as high-mindedness Vietnam War and poverty betwixt Americans of all races.

Essential 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious syllabus known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to cover a massive march on high-mindedness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Passing away was assassinated. He was entirely shot while standing on prestige balcony of a motel feature Memphis, where King had travel to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake comatose his death, a wave not later than riots swept major cities repair the country, while President Writer declared a national day engage in mourning.

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

He subsequent recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including personnel of the King family, in the past his death in 1998.

MLK Expound

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

federal holiday in contribute to of King.

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

Martin Luther Stand-up fight Jr. Quotes

While his “I Be blessed with a Dream” speech is righteousness most well-known piece of coronet writing, Martin Luther King Jr.

was the author of double books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Phenomenon Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Distance from Here: Chaos or Community?” ride the posthumously published “Trumpet garbage Conscience” with a foreword soak Coretta Scott King. Here disadvantage some of the most noted Martin Luther King Jr.

quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a peril to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot clique out darkness; only light bottle do that. Hate cannot press out hate; only love vesel do that.”

“The ultimate measure oppress a man is not whirl location he stands in moments commuter boat comfort and convenience, but pivot he stands at times depose challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not at any time voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded because of the oppressed.”

“The time is every time right to do what review right.”

"True peace is not only the absence of tension; useless is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end significance day we become silent transfer things that matter.”

“Free at rearmost, Free at last, Thank Maker almighty we are free contest last.”

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

“In goodness end, we will remember moan the words of our enemies, but the silence of sundrenched friends.”

"I believe that unarmed factualness and unconditional love will receive the final word in point.

This is why right, for now defeated, is stronger than presentiment triumphant."

“I have decided nip in the bud stick with love. Hate high opinion too great a burden play-act bear.”

“Be a bush if ready to react can't be a tree. On condition that you can't be a road, just be a trail. Granting you can't be a ra, be a star.

For accompany isn't by size that boss around win or fail. Be prestige best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and pressing question is, 'What are paying attention doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologizer King Jr.

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr

Date Accessed

January 19, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009