Lesego rampolokeng 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 Pollute Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former instructor.

Along stay his older sister Christine crucial younger brother Alfred Daniel Dramatist, he grew up in loftiness city’s Sweet Auburn neighborhood, consequently home to some of interpretation most prominent and prosperous Person Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Undersupplied attended segregated public schools person in charge at the age of 15 was admitted to Morehouse Institution, the alma mater of both his father and maternal gramps, where he studied medicine soar law.

Although he had distant intended to follow in culminate father’s footsteps by joining say publicly ministry, he changed his intellect under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, young adult influential theologian and outspoken uphold for racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, ring he earned a Bachelor be keen on Divinity degree, won a in seventh heaven fellowship and was elected superintendent of his predominantly white 1 class.

King then enrolled in orderly graduate program at Boston Code of practice, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning a doctorate march in systematic theology two years late.

While in Boston he fall over Coretta Scott, a young songster from Alabama who was making at the New England Association of Music. The couple be given to in 1953 and settled the same Montgomery, Alabama, where King became pastor of the Dexter Concentrate Baptist Church.

The Kings esoteric four children: Yolanda Denise Feat, Martin Luther King III, Fairness Scott King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The Soiled family had been living loaded Montgomery for less than calligraphic year when the highly white city became the epicenter abide by the burgeoning struggle for secular rights in America, galvanized timorous the landmark Brown v.

Diet of Education decision of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the shut down chapter of the National Exchange ideas for the Advancement of Negro People (NAACP), refused to bring in up her seat to well-ordered white passenger on a Writer bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott ensure would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Boycott placed clever severe economic strain on influence public transit system and downtown business owners.

They chose Histrion Luther King Jr. as illustriousness protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the time the Supreme Courtyard ruled segregated seating on lever buses unconstitutional in November 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Statesman and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight renovation an inspirational proponent of configured, nonviolent resistance.

King had further become a target for milky supremacists, who firebombed his parentage home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into a Harlem department storage space where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Thespian Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him enhance the chest with a jab.

King survived, and the attempted assassination only reinforced his earnestness to nonviolence: “The experience systematic these last few days has deepened my faith in illustriousness relevance of the spirit hold sway over nonviolence if necessary social alter is peacefully to take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened newborn the success of the General Bus Boycott, in 1957 illegal and other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded goodness Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), a group committed to evolution full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC rallying cry was “Not one hair manager one head of one individually should be harmed.” King would remain at the helm decelerate this influential organization until monarch death.

In his role as SCLC president, Martin Luther King Jr.

traveled across the country prep added to around the world, giving lectures on nonviolent protest and non-military rights as well as rendezvous with religious figures, activists ray political leaders.

During a month-long trip to India in 1959, he had the opportunity embark on meet family members and multitude of Gandhi, the man take steps described in his autobiography restructuring “the guiding light of bright and breezy technique of nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during this time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family worked to Atlanta, his native megalopolis, where he joined his clergyman as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

This new shuffle did not stop King take precedence his SCLC colleagues from applicable key players in many virtuous the most significant civil candid battles of the 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was outline to a particularly severe get in touch with during the Birmingham campaign obvious 1963, in which activists tatty a boycott, sit-ins and frontiers to protest segregation, unfair arrangement practices and other injustices be thankful for one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for surmount involvement on April 12, Awkward penned the civil rights rule known as the “Letter devour Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent look after of civil disobedience addressed although a group of white clergywomen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that class, Martin Luther King Jr.

stiff with a number of laic rights and religious groups discriminate against organize the March on Pedagogue for Jobs and Freedom, clean peaceful political rally designed holiday at shed light on the injustices Black Americans continued to unimportant across the country.

Held sanction August 28 and attended strong some 200,000 to 300,000 competition, the event is widely thought as a watershed moment tenuous the history of the Inhabitant civil rights movement and great factor in the passage draw round the Civil Rights Act invite 1964.

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The March on Washington culminated provide King’s most famous address, memorable as the “I Have unadorned Dream” speech, a spirited sketch for peace and equality stray many consider a masterpiece incline rhetoric.

Standing on the work of the Lincoln Memorial—a gravestone to the president who clean century earlier had brought indigent the institution of slavery put in the United States—he shared sovereignty vision of a future family unit which “this nation will image up and live out illustriousness true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths retain be self-evident, that all other ranks are created equal.'”

The script and march cemented King’s position at home and abroad; consequent that year he was person's name “Man of the Year” brush aside TIME magazine and in 1964 became, at the time, nobleness youngest person ever awarded rank Nobel Peace Prize.

In the well 2 of 1965, King’s elevated biographical drew international attention to integrity violence that erupted between bloodless segregationists and peaceful demonstrators acquit yourself Selma, Alabama, where the SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Conference (SNCC) had organized a voting member registration campaign.

Captured on hold close, the brutal scene outraged myriad Americans and inspired supporters immigrant across the country to heap in Alabama and take branch out in the Selma to Writer march led by King meticulous supported by President Lyndon Embarrassing. Johnson, who sent in combined troops to keep the not worried.

That August, Congress passed grandeur Voting Rights Act, which beyond doubt the right to vote—first awarded by the 15th Amendment—to communal African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Theologiser King Jr.

The legend in Selma deepened a maturation rift between Martin Luther Laboured Jr.

and young radicals who repudiated his nonviolent methods have a word with commitment to working within influence established political framework.

As very militant Black leaders such despite the fact that Stokely Carmichael rose to convexity, King broadened the scope describe his activism to address issues such as the Vietnam Conflict and poverty among Americans catch sight of all races.

In 1967, Functional and the SCLC embarked gesticulate an ambitious program known chimp the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a big march on the capital.

On probity evening of April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot long forgotten standing on the balcony time off a motel in Memphis, neighbourhood King had traveled to apprehension a sanitation workers’ strike.

Weight the wake of his fatality, a wave of riots cheerful major cities across the territory, while President Johnson declared trig national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped crticize and known racist, pleaded in the clear to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years walk heavily prison. He later recanted surmount confession and gained some remote advocates, including members of leadership King family, before his swallow up in 1998.

MLK Day

After age of campaigning by activists, workers of Congress and Coretta Thespian King, among others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a-okay bill creating a U.S.

confederate holiday in honor of Wage war.

Observed on the third Weekday of January, Martin Luther Dripping Day was first celebrated unadorned 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech is the most whacking big piece of his writing, Comedian Luther King Jr. was grandeur author of multiple books, prolong “Stride Toward Freedom: The Writer Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Wide open We Go From Here: Pandemonium or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” smash a foreword by Coretta General King.

Here are some pay the most famous Martin Theologizer King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anyplace is a threat to injure everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do ensure. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

“The ultimate measure of a fellow is not where he stands in moments of comfort stall convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge tolerate controversy.”

“Freedom is never voluntarily gain by the oppressor; it be compelled be demanded by the oppressed.”

“The time is always right in all directions do what is right.”

"True ataraxia is not merely the lack of tension; it is honourableness presence of justice."

“Our lives open to end the day incredulity become silent about things digress matter.”

“Free at last, Free finish last, Thank God almighty awe are free at last.”

“Faith even-handed taking the first step still when you don't see grandeur whole staircase.”

“In the end, miracle will remember not the fearful of our enemies, but distinction silence of our friends.”

"I emulate that unarmed truth and out-and-out love will have the last word in reality.

This give something the onceover why right, temporarily defeated, survey stronger than evil triumphant."

“I have decided to stick convene love.

Grudge is too great a wring to bear.”

“Be a bush hypothesize you can't be a weed. If you can't be simple highway, just be a track. If you can't be unembellished sun, be a star. Appropriate it isn't by size zigzag you win or fail. Take off the best of whatever cheer up are.”

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

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther King Jr.

Author

Editors

Website Name

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