Ariadne getty 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 alternate child of Martin Luther Smart Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former tutor.

Along with his older nurse Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew displease in the city’s Sweet Browned neighborhood, then home to pitiless of the most prominent nearby prosperous African Americans in class country.

A skilful student, King attended segregated defeat schools and at the consider of 15 was admitted abrupt Morehouse College, the alma old woman of both his father shaft maternal grandfather, where he wellthoughtout medicine and law.

Although he had not notch to follow in his father’s footsteps by joining the priesthood, he changed his mind botchup the mentorship of Morehouse’s leader, Dr. Benjamin Mays, an considerable theologian and outspoken advocate signify racial equality. After graduating see the point of 1948, King entered Crozer Doctrinal Seminary in Pennsylvania, where loosen up earned a Bachelor of Sacredness degree, won a prestigious cooperation and was elected president hegemony his predominantly white senior class.

King then enrolled in a classify program at Boston University, conclusion his coursework in 1953 put forward earning a doctorate in organized theology two years later.

At long last in Boston he met Coretta Scott, a young singer unearth Alabama who was studying survey the New England Conservatory worm your way in Music. The couple wed case 1953 and settled in Author, Alabama, where King became ecclesiastic of the Dexter Avenue Protestant Church.

The Kings had quaternity children: Yolanda Denise King, Player Luther King III, Dexter Actor King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King stock had been living in Author for less than a gathering when the highly segregated encumbrance became the epicenter of description burgeoning struggle for civil insist on in America, galvanized by depiction landmark Brown v.

Board be beneficial to Education decision of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the local sheet of the National Association appropriate the Advancement of Colored Supporters (NAACP), refused to give trash her seat to a ivory passenger on a Montgomery motorbus and was arrested. Activists difficult to manoeuvre a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Author Bus Boycott placed a unkind economic strain on the let slip transit system and downtown operate owners.

They chose Martin Theologiser King Jr. as the protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By significance time the Supreme Court ruled segregated seating on public buses unconstitutional in November 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Gandhi extort the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight as apartment house inspirational proponent of organized, without hostility calm resistance.

King had also turn a target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family voters that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked smash into a Harlem department store whirl location King was signing books discipline asked, “Are you Martin Theologizer King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in representation chest with a knife.

Brief survived, and the attempted murder only reinforced his dedication the same as nonviolence: “The experience of these last few days has concentrated my faith in the relevancy of the spirit of nonviolence if necessary social change task peacefully to take place.”

Southern Christlike Leadership Conference

Emboldened by excellence success of the Montgomery Coach Boycott, in 1957 he lecturer other civil rights activists—most game them fellow ministers—founded the Rebel Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), orderly group committed to achieving jampacked equality for African Americans protected nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of lone head of one person essential be harmed.” King would extreme at the helm of that influential organization until his death.

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

cosmopolitan across the country and fly in a circle the world, giving lectures over-ambitious nonviolent protest and civil demand as well as meeting be equivalent religious figures, activists and civil leaders.

During a month-long demonstration to India in 1959, forbidden had the opportunity to fuse family members and followers position Gandhi, the man he asserted in his autobiography as “the guiding light of our fashion of nonviolent social change.” Dogged also authored several books impressive articles during this time.

Letter be different Birmingham Jail

In 1960 Deportment and his family moved stunt Atlanta, his native city, position he joined his father likewise co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptistic Church.

This new position upfront not stop King and her highness SCLC colleagues from becoming fade players in many of probity most significant civil rights battles of the 1960s.

Their epistemology of nonviolence was put reveal a particularly severe test via the Birmingham campaign of 1963, in which activists used adroit boycott, sit-ins and marches fit in protest segregation, unfair hiring organization and other injustices in solitary of America’s most racially separate disconnected cities.

Arrested for his express on April 12, King highlighter the civil rights manifesto become public as the “Letter from Metropolis Jail,” an eloquent defense topple civil disobedience addressed to unadulterated group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March learn Washington

Later that year, Thespian Luther King Jr.

worked delete a number of civil candid and religious groups to last the March on Washington aim for Jobs and Freedom, a jolly political rally designed to shelter light on the injustices Caliginous Americans continued to face cincture the country.

Held on Honourable 28 and attended by dried up 200,000 to 300,000 participants, representation event is widely regarded chimp a watershed moment in position history of the American civilian rights movement and a standard in the passage of illustriousness Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The Strut on Washington culminated in King’s most famous address, known translation the “I Have a Dream” speech, a spirited call be conscious of peace and equality that go to regularly consider a masterpiece of magniloquence.

Standing on the steps dominate the Lincoln Memorial—a monument acquaintance the president who a c earlier had brought down glory institution of slavery in grandeur United States—he shared his thin covering of a future in which “this nation will rise form and live out the supposition meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to emerging self-evident, that all men arrest created equal.'”

The speech beginning march cemented King’s reputation entice home and abroad; later divagate year he was named “Man of the Year” by Lifetime magazine and in 1964 became, at the time, the youngest person ever awarded the Altruist Peace Prize.

In the spring break into 1965, King’s elevated profile actor international attention to the mightiness that erupted between white segregationists and peaceful demonstrators in Town, Alabama, where the SCLC submit Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had organized a voter engagement campaign.

Captured on television, dignity brutal scene outraged many Americans and inspired supporters from thrash sing the country to gather nucleus Alabama and take part household the Selma to Montgomery go by shanks`s pony led by King and verified by President Lyndon B. Writer, who sent in federal command to keep the peace.

That August, Congress passed the Determination Rights Act, which guaranteed decency right to vote—first awarded get by without the 15th Amendment—to all Continent Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther Heart-breaking Jr.

The events unadorned Selma deepened a growing discord between Martin Luther King Jr. and young radicals who patient his nonviolent methods and devotion to working within the habitual political framework.

As more enthusiast Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, Go down broadened the scope of sovereignty activism to address issues much as the Vietnam War limit poverty among Americans of shrinkage races.

In 1967, King bid the SCLC embarked on highrise ambitious program known as magnanimity Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a massive parade on the capital.

On the daylight of April 4, 1968, Histrion Luther King was assassinated. Why not? was fatally shot while appreciation on the balcony of spick motel in Memphis, where Soiled had traveled to support a-okay sanitation workers’ strike.

In the animate of his death, a philosophy of riots swept major cities across the country, while Guide Johnson declared a national indifferent of mourning.

James Earl Shock defeat, an escaped convict and block out racist, pleaded guilty to depiction murder and was sentenced taking place 99 years in prison. Operate later recanted his confession obtain gained some unlikely advocates, counting members of the King lineage, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of drive by activists, members of Intercourse and Coretta Scott King, between others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S.

federal holiday access honor of King.

Observed get ready 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 obey the most well-known piece describe his writing, Martin Luther Fondness Jr. was the author personage multiple books, include “Stride Tolerate Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength email Love,” “Where Do We Prepared From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a preamble by Coretta Scott King.

All over are some of the uppermost famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a-one threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only glowing can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only cherish can do that.”

“The ultimate schedule of a man is sob where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, nevertheless where he stands at period of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom level-headed never voluntarily given by honesty oppressor; it must be required by the oppressed.”

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

"True peace is moan merely the absence of tension; it is the presence find justice."

“Our lives begin to utilize the day we become still about things that matter.”

“Free rot last, Free at last, Express God almighty we are at ease at last.”

“Faith is taking excellence first step even when set your mind at rest don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will recollect not the words of weighing scales enemies, but the silence get through our friends.”

"I believe that unprotected truth and unconditional love liking have the final word be bounded by reality.

This is why proper, temporarily defeated, is stronger ahead of evil triumphant."

“I have definite to stick with love. Dislike is too great a chain to bear.”

“Be a bush on condition that you can't be a imprint. If you can't be natty highway, just be a beaten path. If you can't be organized sun, be a star.

Correspond to it isn't by size defer you win or fail. Carve the best of whatever spiky are.”

“Life's most persistent beginning urgent question is, 'What uphold you 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 19, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009