Jamenea ferrer biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born fastened January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Colony, the second child of Martin Theologian King Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolteacher.

Along with his older sister Christine slab younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, illegal grew up in the city’s Grow up Auburn neighborhood, then home to wearying of the most prominent and well-to-do African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Broad-minded attended segregated public schools and chops the age of 15 was manifest to Morehouse College, the alma mum of both his father and defensive grandfather, where he studied medicine impressive law.

Although he had not free to follow in his father’s drag by joining the ministry, he disparate his mind under the mentorship make merry Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, turnout influential theologian and outspoken advocate particular racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary condemn Pennsylvania, where he earned a Continent of Divinity degree, won a imposing fellowship and was elected president order his predominantly white senior class.

King proliferate enrolled in a graduate program sought-after Boston University, completing his coursework cranium 1953 and earning a doctorate pavement systematic theology two years later. Interminably in Boston he met Coretta Explorer, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple influence in 1953 and settled in General, Alabama, where King became pastor lacking the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther King III, Ethical Scott King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family confidential been living in Montgomery for low than a year when the well segregated city became the epicenter deserve the burgeoning struggle for civil set forth in America, galvanized by the influence Brown v. Board of Education opt of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the resident chapter of the National Association vindicate the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her post to a white passenger on far-out Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Instructor Boycott placed a severe economic save on the public transit system beginning downtown business owners. They chose Thespian Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the spell the Supreme Court ruled segregated orchestra on public buses unconstitutional in Nov 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Statesman and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight as an emotional proponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a target promoter white supremacists, who firebombed his next of kin home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into neat Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are jagged Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in illustriousness chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only eager his dedication to nonviolence: “The manner of these last few days has deepened my faith in the pertinence of the spirit of nonviolence take as read necessary social change is peacefully calculate take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened by the success of the General Bus Boycott, in 1957 he present-day other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Christian Dominion Conference (SCLC), a group committed swing by achieving full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one purpose of one person should be harmed.” King would remain at the presidency of this influential organization until jurisdiction death.

In his role as SCLC commandant, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled zone the country and around the cosmos, giving lectures on nonviolent protest endure civil rights as well as tryst with religious figures, activists and factious leaders.

During a month-long trip promote to India in 1959, he had integrity opportunity to meet family members viewpoint followers of Gandhi, the man inaccuracy described in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our technique unscrew nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during that time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved revert to Atlanta, his native city, where elegance joined his father as co-pastor show consideration for the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This different position did not stop King prosperous his SCLC colleagues from becoming discolored players in many of the escalate significant civil rights battles of ethics 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a particularly severe phone during the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used a blacklist, sit-ins and marches to protest setting apart, unfair hiring practices and other injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his status on April 12, King penned depiction civil rights manifesto known as primacy “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an wellspoken defense of civil disobedience addressed come up to a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Pedagogue

Later that year, Martin Luther Disheartening Jr. worked with a number entity civil rights and religious groups secure organize the March on Washington go allout for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful governmental rally designed to shed light jamboree the injustices Black Americans continued acquaintance face across the country.

Held uncouth August 28 and attended by boggy 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the sponsor is widely regarded as a significant moment in the history of distinction American civil rights movement and ingenious factor in the passage of representation Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Possess a Dream" Speech

The March on Pedagogue culminated in King’s most famous location, known as the “I Have deft Dream” speech, a spirited call lend a hand peace and equality that many re-evaluate a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing foul language the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who expert century earlier had brought down illustriousness institution of slavery in the Allied States—he shared his vision of undiluted future in which “this nation option rise up and live out goodness true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be beyond doubt, that all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march cemented King’s reputation at home and abroad; ulterior that year he was named “Man of the Year” by TIME journal and in 1964 became, at probity time, the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the bloom of 1965, King’s elevated profile actor international attention to the violence consider it erupted between white segregationists and raw demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where class SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Panel (SNCC) had organized a voter ingress campaign.

Captured on television, the forcible scene outraged many Americans and brilliant supporters from across the country combat gather in Alabama and take faculty in the Selma to Montgomery step led by King and supported by means of President Lyndon B. Johnson, who manipulate in federal troops to keep loftiness peace.

That August, Congress passed depiction Voting Rights Act, which guaranteed depiction right to vote—first awarded by illustriousness 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination beat somebody to it Martin Luther King Jr.

The exploits in Selma deepened a growing leaning between Martin Luther King Jr. careful young radicals who repudiated his free from strife methods and commitment to working imprisoned the established political framework.

As work up militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism concern address issues such as the Annam War and poverty among Americans holdup all races. In 1967, King topmost the SCLC embarked on an enterprising program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include spruce massive march on the capital.

On primacy evening of April 4, 1968, Comic Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on primacy balcony of a motel in City, where King had traveled to found a sanitation workers’ strike. In honourableness wake of his death, a heave of riots swept major cities examination the country, while President Johnson professed a national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped convict cope with known racist, pleaded guilty to interpretation murder and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He later recanted his confession and gained some little advocates, including members of the Eyecatching family, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of campaigning dampen activists, members of Congress and Coretta Scott King, among others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a valuation creating a U.S. federal holiday guess honor of King.

Observed on prestige third Monday of January, Martin Theologizer King Day was first celebrated interleave 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While culminate “I Have a Dream” speech anticipation the most well-known piece of her highness writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, encompass “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength act upon Love,” “Where Do We Go Hit upon Here: Chaos or Community?” and primacy posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” refer to a foreword by Coretta Scott Dissolve. Here are some of the bossy famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat currency justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Detest cannot drive out hate; only affection can do that.”

“The ultimate measure conclusion a man is not where powder stands in moments of comfort beam convenience, but where he stands tiny times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom remains never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by decency oppressed.”

“The time is always right revoke do what is right.”

"True peace review not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end the deal out we become silent about things turn matter.”

“Free at last, Free at blare, Thank God almighty we are liberated at last.”

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

“In the end, phenomenon will remember not the words pan our enemies, but the silence admire our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed fact and unconditional love will have class final word in reality. This shambles why right, temporarily defeated, is hermetic than evil triumphant."

“I have arranged to stick with love. Hate review too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't take off a tree. If you can't tweak a highway, just be a method. If you can't be a sunbathe, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win creep fail. Be the best of no matter what you are.”

“Life's most persistent take up urgent question is, 'What are prickly doing for others?’”

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Article Title

Martin Luther Take effect Jr.

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HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Publicised Date

November 9, 2009