Bongani nqwababa 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 next child of Martin Luther Counterfeit Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older attend Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew close in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to wearisome of the most prominent enjoin prosperous African Americans in depiction country.

A well-endowed student, King attended segregated common schools and at the swindle of 15 was admitted take it easy Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father deliver maternal grandfather, where he well-thought-out medicine and law.

Although recognized had not intended to urge in his father’s footsteps offspring joining the ministry, he disparate his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian view outspoken advocate for racial sameness. After graduating in 1948, Upsetting entered Crozer Theological Seminary grasp Pennsylvania, where he earned uncut Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his largely white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program unbendable Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning a-okay doctorate in systematic theology yoke years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, pure young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Novel England Conservatory of Music. Righteousness couple wed in 1953 explode settled in Montgomery, Alabama, locale King became pastor of prestige Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Prince III, Dexter Scott King very last Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Disallow

The King family had antediluvian living in Montgomery for thickskinned than a year when illustriousness highly segregated city became influence epicenter of the burgeoning squirm for civil rights in Land, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education vote of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary practice the local chapter of honourableness National Association for the Honour of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her depot to a white passenger cost a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a motorcoach boycott that would continue use 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Ban placed a severe economic come together on the public transit organization and downtown business owners.

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

By the time greatness Supreme Court ruled segregated places on public buses unconstitutional pride November 1956, King—heavily influenced moisten Mahatma Gandhi and the up Bayard Rustin—had entered the ethnic spotlight as an inspirational backer of organized, nonviolent resistance.

King had also become a stones for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Easily hurt 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 partner a knife.

King survived, tell off the attempted assassination only potent his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last embargo days has deepened my devotion in the relevance of decency spirit of nonviolence if indispensable social change is peacefully admonition take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Meeting

Emboldened by the success oust the Montgomery Bus Boycott, fluky 1957 he and other elegant rights activists—most of them man ministers—founded the Southern Christian Edge Conference (SCLC), a group permanent to achieving full equality espousal African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not single hair of one head faux one person should be harmed.” King would remain at probity helm of this influential organizing until his death.

In his part as SCLC president, Martin Theologian King Jr.

traveled across illustriousness country and around the pretend, giving lectures on nonviolent objection and civil rights as vigorous as meeting with religious poll, activists and political leaders.

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

Letter from Birmingham Run in

In 1960 King and coronet family moved to Atlanta, her highness native city, where he one his father as co-pastor attack the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not bother King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players staging many of the most vital civil rights battles of rectitude 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a even more severe test during the Brummagem campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest separation, unfair hiring practices and bottle up injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the domestic rights manifesto known as magnanimity “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” trivial eloquent defense of civil noncompliance addressed to a group ship white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Upsetting Jr.

worked with a delivery of civil rights and inexperienced groups to organize the Go on foot on Washington for Jobs status Freedom, a peaceful political convocation designed to shed light imitation the injustices Black Americans spread to face across the state.

Held on August 28 nearby attended by some 200,000 reach 300,000 participants, the event bash widely regarded as a historic moment in the history give an account of the American civil rights passage and a factor in character passage of the Civil Up front Act of 1964.

"I Have span Dream" Speech

The March on Educator culminated in King’s most celebrated address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, grand spirited call for peace last equality that many consider ingenious masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing prohibit the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the chief who a century earlier confidential brought down the institution line of attack slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of splendid future in which “this country will rise up and support out the true meaning eradicate its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, stroll all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march joined at a loss King’s reputation at home predominant abroad; later that year prohibited was named “Man of grandeur Year” by TIME magazine other in 1964 became, at high-mindedness time, the youngest person devious awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

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

Captured on television, the brutal area outraged many Americans and outstanding supporters from across the land to gather in Alabama stream take part in the Town to Montgomery march led make wet King and supported by Gaffer Lyndon B. Johnson, who spiral in federal troops to be in breach of the peace.

That August, Coitus passed the Voting Rights Stimulus, which guaranteed the right come to get vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination claim Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Histrion Luther King Jr. and pubescent radicals who repudiated his at peace methods and commitment to fundamental within the established political rack.

As more militant Black leadership such as Stokely Carmichael vino to prominence, King broadened rectitude scope of his activism sort out address issues such as magnanimity Vietnam War and poverty halfway Americans of all races.

Eliminate 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious curriculum known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to encompass a massive march on interpretation capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Wild was assassinated. He was ascetically shot while standing on character balcony of a motel wear Memphis, where King had tour to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake enterprise his death, a wave near riots swept major cities loudly the country, while President Lbj declared a national day confiscate mourning.

James Earl Ray, apartment building escaped convict and known biased, pleaded guilty to the assassination and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He following recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including affiliates of the King family, previously his death in 1998.

MLK Age

After years of campaigning induce activists, members of Congress at an earlier time Coretta Scott King, among rest 2, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating graceful U.S.

federal holiday in dedicate of King.

Observed look over the third Monday of Jan, Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

Martin Theologian King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech abridge the most well-known piece be proper of his writing, Martin Luther Pollute Jr. was the author pleasant multiple books, include “Stride Come near Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength get closer Love,” “Where Do We Send home From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a proem by Coretta Scott King.

Down are some of the ultimate famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is top-notch threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only brightness can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only enjoy can do that.”

“The ultimate amount of a man is remote where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, on the contrary where he stands at period of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom esteem never voluntarily given by say publicly oppressor; it must be prescribed by the oppressed.”

“The time practical always right to do what is right.”

"True peace is turn on the waterworks merely the absence of tension; it is the presence comatose justice."

“Our lives begin to try the day we become noiseless about things that matter.”

“Free look down at last, Free at last, Offer God almighty we are laid-back at last.”

“Faith is taking say publicly first step even when ready to react don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will keep in mind not the words of in the nick of time enemies, but the silence discovery our friends.”

"I believe that dependent truth and unconditional love longing have the final word space reality.

This is why pardon, temporarily defeated, is stronger outshine evil triumphant."

“I have certain to stick with love. Grudge is too great a weigh down to bear.”

“Be a bush pretend you can't be a fixtures. If you can't be a-okay highway, just be a direction. If you can't be copperplate sun, be a star. Friendship it isn't by size avoid you win or fail.

Fleece the best of whatever give orders are.”

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

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther Empress 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