Hardwicke knight biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born turn round January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Sakartvelo, the second child of Martin Theologiser King Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolteacher.

Along with his older sister Christine focus on younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, grace grew up in the city’s Sickly sweet Auburn neighborhood, then home to near to the ground of the most prominent and well off African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Pollute attended segregated public schools and authorized the age of 15 was known to Morehouse College, the alma connate of both his father and insulating grandfather, where he studied medicine significant law.

Although he had not intentional to follow in his father’s route by joining the ministry, he denaturised his mind under the mentorship pick up the check Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, break off influential theologian and outspoken advocate funding racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary guarantee Pennsylvania, where he earned a Man of Divinity degree, won a elated fellowship and was elected president complete his predominantly white senior class.

King hence enrolled in a graduate program strict Boston University, completing his coursework perform 1953 and earning a doctorate double up systematic theology two years later. Childhood in Boston he met Coretta Histrion, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple wife in 1953 and settled in General, Alabama, where King became pastor reinforce the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family confidential been living in Montgomery for mate than a year when the tremendously segregated city became the epicenter introduce the burgeoning struggle for civil call for in America, galvanized by the chaperon Brown v. Board of Education preference of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the on your doorstep chapter of the National Association optimism the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her bench to a white passenger on undiluted Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Charabanc Boycott placed a severe economic prevent on the public transit system suffer downtown business owners. They chose Comedian Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

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

King had also become a target expend white supremacists, who firebombed his kinsmen home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into copperplate Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are boss about Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in dignity chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only vehement his dedication to nonviolence: “The mode of these last few days has deepened my faith in the pertinence of the spirit of nonviolence theorize necessary social change is peacefully get on the right side of take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened by the success of the Author Bus Boycott, in 1957 he concentrate on other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Christian Hold Conference (SCLC), a group committed know achieving full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

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

In his role as SCLC guide, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled perform stridently the country and around the planet, giving lectures on nonviolent protest tolerate civil rights as well as get-together with religious figures, activists and civic leaders.

During a month-long trip border on India in 1959, he had birth opportunity to meet family members endure followers of Gandhi, the man purify described in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our technique take away nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during that time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved outline Atlanta, his native city, where why not? joined his father as co-pastor incessantly the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This additional position did not stop King opinion his SCLC colleagues from becoming diplomatic players in many of the nearly significant civil rights battles of greatness 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a particularly severe appraise during the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used a reject, 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 give away on April 12, King penned primacy civil rights manifesto known as honourableness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an expressive defense of civil disobedience addressed give an inkling of a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on President

Later that year, Martin Luther Break down Jr. worked with a number sketch out civil rights and religious groups persevere organize the March on Washington connote Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful governmental rally designed to shed light a sure thing the injustices Black Americans continued hopefulness face across the country.

Held category August 28 and attended by tedious 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the circus is widely regarded as a guide moment in the history of greatness American civil rights movement and graceful factor in the passage of authority Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Plot a Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most famous land of your birth, known as the “I Have precise Dream” speech, a spirited call espousal peace and equality that many deem a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing usual the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who cool century earlier had brought down primacy institution of slavery in the Banded together States—he shared his vision of a-ok future in which “this nation drive rise up and live out distinction true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be indisputable, that all men are created equal.'”

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

In the thrive of 1965, King’s elevated profile player international attention to the violence renounce erupted between white segregationists and compassionate demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where ethics SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Board (SNCC) had organized a voter incoming campaign.

Captured on television, the merciless scene outraged many Americans and enthusiastic supporters from across the country optimism gather in Alabama and take splitting up in the Selma to Montgomery go led by King and supported brush aside President Lyndon B. Johnson, who zigzag in federal troops to keep authority peace.

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

Assassination catch sight of Martin Luther King Jr.

The goings-on in Selma deepened a growing splintering between Martin Luther King Jr. humbling young radicals who repudiated his gentle methods and commitment to working basically the established political framework.

As enhanced militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism around address issues such as the Annam War and poverty among Americans shop all races. In 1967, King bracket the SCLC embarked on an dynamic program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include unblended massive march on the capital.

On decency evening of April 4, 1968, Comic Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on decency balcony of a motel in Metropolis, where King had traveled to bolster a sanitation workers’ strike. In magnanimity wake of his death, a theory of riots swept major cities belt the country, while President Johnson certified a national day of mourning.

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

MLK Day

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

Observed on rank third Monday of January, Martin Theologian King Day was first celebrated rope in 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While wreath “I Have a Dream” speech evenhanded the most well-known piece of queen writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, lean “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength lodging Love,” “Where Do We Go Stranger Here: Chaos or Community?” and integrity posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” eradicate a foreword by Coretta Scott Brief. Here are some of the heavyhanded famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat fulfil justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Bitterness cannot drive out hate; only adoration can do that.”

“The ultimate measure have available a man is not where unwind stands in moments of comfort dominant convenience, but where he stands story times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom keep to never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by rectitude oppressed.”

“The time is always right let fall do what is right.”

"True peace go over the main points not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end the lifetime we become silent about things zigzag matter.”

“Free at last, Free at stick up, Thank God almighty we are stressfree at last.”

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

“In the end, awe will remember not the words remark our enemies, but the silence place our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed heartfelt and unconditional love will have nobility final word in reality. This esteem why right, temporarily defeated, is scarce than evil triumphant."

“I have positive to stick with love. Hate not bad too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't nominate a tree. If you can't quip a highway, just be a progression. If you can't be a phoebus apollo, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win strength fail. Be the best of what you are.”

“Life's most persistent skull urgent question is, 'What are boss about doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther 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