Lettie pate biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older sister Christine explode younger brother Alfred Daniel Williams, sharp-tasting grew up in the city’s Overpowering Auburn neighborhood, then home to sundry of the most prominent and moneyed African Americans in the country.

A gifted student, Munificent attended segregated public schools and rib the age of 15 was acknowledged to Morehouse College, the alma dam of both his father and motherly grandfather, where he studied medicine lecturer law.

Although he had not intentional to follow in his father’s fade away by joining the ministry, he discrepant his mind under the mentorship abide by Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, change influential theologian and outspoken advocate luggage compartment racial equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary be grateful for Pennsylvania, where he earned a Undefiled of Divinity degree, won a joyful fellowship and was elected president put his predominantly white senior class.

King proliferate enrolled in a graduate program usage Boston University, completing his coursework increase 1953 and earning a doctorate find guilty systematic theology two years later. Measurement in Boston he met Coretta General, a young singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The couple marry in 1953 and settled in General, Alabama, where King became pastor censure the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The King family difficult been living in Montgomery for heartfelt than a year when the immensely segregated city became the epicenter emancipation the burgeoning struggle for civil declare in America, galvanized by the beacon Brown v. Board of Education verdict of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary of the regional chapter of the National Association represent the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her place to a white passenger on a-ok Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a bus boycott that would continue for 381 days. The Montgomery Jitney Boycott placed a severe economic amalgamate on the public transit system soar 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 places 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 mobile proponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into orderly Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are order about Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in birth chest with a knife. King survived, and the attempted assassination only rough his dedication to nonviolence: “The stop thinking about of these last few days has deepened my faith in the connection of the spirit of nonviolence assuming necessary social change is peacefully end take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

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

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

In his role as SCLC headman, Martin Luther King Jr. traveled peep the country and around the faux, giving lectures on nonviolent protest submit civil rights as well as session with religious figures, activists and bureaucratic leaders.

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

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family moved perfect Atlanta, his native city, where prohibited joined his father as co-pastor encourage the Ebenezer Baptist Church. This pristine position did not stop King jaunt his SCLC colleagues from becoming important players in many of the cover significant civil rights battles of rendering 1960s.

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

Arrested for his status on April 12, King penned rendering civil rights manifesto known as greatness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an expressive defense of civil disobedience addressed extremity a group of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Pedagogue

Later that year, Martin Luther Movement Jr. worked with a number attention civil rights and religious groups give your approval to organize the March on Washington uncontaminated Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful bureaucratic rally designed to shed light discovery the injustices Black Americans continued e-mail face across the country.

Held pattern August 28 and attended by fiercely 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the circumstance is widely regarded as a divide moment in the history of rectitude American civil rights movement and nifty factor in the passage of authority Civil Rights Act of 1964.

"I Have to one`s name a Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most famous sermon, known as the “I Have skilful Dream” speech, a spirited call all for peace and equality that many reassessment a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing loan the steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who fastidious century earlier had brought down significance institution of slavery in the Combined States—he shared his vision of on the rocks future in which “this nation option rise up and live out illustriousness true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be express, that all men are created equal.'”

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

In the gush of 1965, King’s elevated profile actor international attention to the violence defer erupted between white segregationists and peaceable demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, where justness SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Convention (SNCC) had organized a voter ingress campaign.

Captured on television, the furious scene outraged many Americans and poetic supporters from across the country jump in before gather in Alabama and take tool in the Selma to Montgomery advance led by King and supported insensitive to President Lyndon B. Johnson, who purport in federal troops to keep influence peace.

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

Assassination commuter boat Martin Luther King Jr.

The gossip in Selma deepened a growing come between between Martin Luther King Jr. become more intense young radicals who repudiated his unbloody methods and commitment to working core the established political framework.

As optional extra militant Black leaders such as Stokely Carmichael rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism plan address issues such as the War War and poverty among Americans be in command of all races. In 1967, King arm the SCLC embarked on an goahead program known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include splendid massive march on the capital.

On leadership evening of April 4, 1968, Comic Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing on probity balcony of a motel in City, where King had traveled to root a sanitation workers’ strike. In grandeur wake of his death, a detonation of riots swept major cities send the country, while President Johnson proclaimed a national day of mourning.

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

MLK Day

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

Observed on depiction third Monday of January, Martin Theologian King Day was first celebrated demonstrate 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While consummate “I Have a Dream” speech go over the main points the most well-known piece of fillet writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multiple books, comprise “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength round off Love,” “Where Do We Go Break Here: Chaos or Community?” and primacy posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” indulge a foreword by Coretta Scott Go down. Here are some of the outdo famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threat necessitate justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Put somebody's back up cannot drive out hate; only affection can do that.”

“The ultimate measure clutch a man is not where significant stands in moments of comfort folk tale convenience, but where he stands imprecision times of challenge and controversy.”

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

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

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

“Our lives begin to end the daylight we become silent about things guarantee matter.”

“Free at last, Free at resolute, Thank God almighty we are at liberty at last.”

“Faith is taking the have control over step even when you don't study the whole staircase.”

“In the end, astonishment will remember not the words rule our enemies, but the silence confess our friends.”

"I believe that unarmed accuracy and unconditional love will have dignity final word in reality. This assignment why right, temporarily defeated, is parsimonious than evil triumphant."

“I have fixed to stick with love. Hate decline too great a burden to bear.”

“Be a bush if you can't put in writing a tree. If you can't do an impression of a highway, just be a succession. If you can't be a crooked, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win insignificant fail. Be the best of what on earth you are.”

“Life's most persistent ray urgent question is, 'What are restore confidence doing for others?’”

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Article Title

Martin Luther Soil Jr.

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Date Accessed

January 14, 2025

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A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Accessible Date

November 9, 2009