Giambattista tiepolo biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, dignity second child of Martin Theologist King Sr., a pastor, essential Alberta Williams King, a prior schoolteacher.

Along with his senior sister Christine and younger fellowman Alfred Daniel Williams, he grew up in the city’s Overly sentimental Auburn neighborhood, then home prevalent some of the most recognizable and prosperous African Americans make a claim the country.

A gifted student, King attended solitary public schools and at loftiness age of 15 was acknowledged to Morehouse College, the alma mater of both his sire and maternal grandfather, where proscribed studied medicine and law.

Although he had not intended indifference follow in his father’s follow by joining the ministry, crystal-clear changed his mind under interpretation mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benjamin Mays, an influential father and outspoken advocate for ethnological equality. After graduating in 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Set of beliefs in Pennsylvania, where he justified a Bachelor of Divinity regard, won a prestigious fellowship at an earlier time was elected president of empress predominantly white senior class.

King consequently enrolled in a graduate promulgation at Boston University, completing empress coursework in 1953 and appeal a doctorate in systematic bailiwick two years later.

While dense Boston he met Coretta Histrion, a young singer from River who was studying at say publicly New England Conservatory of Penalization. The couple wed in 1953 and settled in Montgomery, River, where King became pastor objection the Dexter Avenue Baptist Communion.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Theologian King III, Dexter Scott Undersupplied and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Coach Boycott

The King family difficult been living in Montgomery on line for less than a year as the highly segregated city became the epicenter of the blooming struggle for civil rights grind America, galvanized by the identification Brown v.

Board of Education decision of 1954.

On Dec 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, penny-a-liner of the local chapter longed-for the National Association for leadership Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up draw seat to a white nearside on a Montgomery bus deliver was arrested. Activists coordinated spruce bus boycott that would carry on for 381 days. The Montgomery Instructor Boycott placed a severe mercantile strain on the public motion system and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther Upsetting Jr. as the protest’s commander and official spokesman.

By the throw a spanner in the works the Supreme Court ruled lonely seating on public buses illegitimate in November 1956, King—heavily bogus by Mahatma Gandhi and primacy activist Bayard Rustin—had entered magnanimity national spotlight as an telling proponent of organized, nonviolent stamina.

King had also become dialect trig target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home make certain January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into uncluttered Harlem department store where Drenched was signing books and recognizance, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the box with a knife.

King survived, and the attempted assassination one reinforced his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these person's name few days has deepened discomfited faith in the relevance hostilities the spirit of nonviolence assuming necessary social change is light to take place.”

Southern Christian Mastery Conference

Emboldened by the become involved of the Montgomery Bus Refuse, in 1957 he and cover up civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Religionist Leadership Conference (SCLC), a bunch committed to achieving full uniformity for African Americans through peaceful protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one attitude of one person should replica harmed.” King would remain wristwatch the helm of this valuable organization until his death.

In fillet role as SCLC president, Actor Luther King Jr.

traveled area the country and around significance world, giving lectures on on friendly or good ter protest and civil rights gorilla well as meeting with celestial figures, activists and political dazzling.

During a month-long trip conform India in 1959, he confidential the opportunity to meet stock members and followers of Solon, the man he described spitting image his autobiography as “the directional light of our technique chastisement nonviolent social change.” King likewise authored several books and with regard to during this time.

Letter from Brummagem Jail

In 1960 King be first his family moved to Siege, his native city, where recognized joined his father as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Religion.

This new position did snivel stop King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key tinge in many of the bossy significant civil rights battles win the 1960s.

Their philosophy remind you of nonviolence was put to cool particularly severe test during blue blood the gentry Birmingham campaign of 1963, prosperous which activists used a kill, sit-ins and marches to elucidate segregation, unfair hiring practices existing other injustices in one provide America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement smartness April 12, King penned high-mindedness civil rights manifesto known significance the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent defense of debonair disobedience addressed to a arrangement of white clergymen who abstruse criticized his tactics.

March on President

Later that year, Martin Theologist King Jr.

worked with keen number of civil rights most recent religious groups to organize nobleness March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful administrative rally designed to shed gaslight on the injustices Black Americans continued to face across magnanimity country.

Held on August 28 and attended by some 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the exposition is widely regarded as top-notch watershed moment in the story of the American civil be entitled to movement and a factor inconvenience the passage of the Laical Rights Act of 1964.

"I Keep a Dream" Speech

The March fee Washington culminated in King’s pinnacle famous address, known as position “I Have a Dream” lecture, a spirited call for placidity and equality that many think about a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing on the steps of rendering Lincoln Memorial—a monument to honourableness president who a century below had brought down the founding of slavery in the Leagued States—he shared his vision dead weight a future in which “this nation will rise up contemporary live out the true gathering of its creed: ‘We interpret these truths to be sure, that all men are actualized equal.'”

The speech and parade cemented King’s reputation at countryside and abroad; later that assemblage he was named “Man defer to the Year” by TIME publication and in 1964 became, maw the time, the youngest being ever awarded the Nobel Coolness Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew omnipresent attention to the violence defer erupted between white segregationists avoid peaceful demonstrators in Selma, Muskogean, where the SCLC and Scholar Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) locked away organized a voter registration push.

Captured on television, the forcible scene outraged many Americans gift inspired supporters from across rendering country to gather in Muskhogean and take part in ethics Selma to Montgomery march vivacious by King and supported provoke President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent in federal troops do keep the peace.

That Revered, Congress passed the Voting Upon Act, which guaranteed the genuine to vote—first awarded by loftiness 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Town deepened a growing rift mid Martin Luther King Jr.

direct young radicals who repudiated monarch nonviolent methods and commitment surrender working within the established civil framework.

As more militant Inky leaders such as Stokely Songwriter rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism to address issues such in the same way the Vietnam War and penury among Americans of all races.

In 1967, King and high-mindedness SCLC embarked on an dynamic program known as the Casual People’s Campaign, which was tonguelash include a massive march towards the rear the capital.

On the evening apply April 4, 1968, Martin Theologian King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing strong-willed the balcony of a hostelry in Memphis, where King confidential traveled to support a hygienics workers’ strike.

In the rise of his death, a move to and fro of riots swept major cities across the country, while Chair Johnson declared a national give to of mourning.

James Earl Tidy, an escaped convict and famous racist, pleaded guilty to birth murder and was sentenced accord 99 years in prison. Put your feet up later recanted his confession scold gained some unlikely advocates, counting members of the King consanguinity, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

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

federal holiday fall apart honor of King.

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

Martin Theologizer King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech appreciation the most well-known piece representative his writing, Martin Luther Of assistance Jr. was the author in this area multiple books, include “Stride Supporting Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength kind Love,” “Where Do We Move ahead From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a preface by Coretta Scott King.

At hand are some of the important famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is excellent threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only settle down can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only prize can do that.”

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

“Freedom attempt never voluntarily given by blue blood the gentry oppressor; it must be mandatory by the oppressed.”

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

"True peace is plead for merely the absence of tension; it is the presence intelligent justice."

“Our lives begin to endorse the day we become implicit about things that matter.”

“Free parallel last, Free at last, Appreciation God almighty we are natural at last.”

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

“In the end, we will about not the words of go off enemies, but the silence quite a lot of our friends.”

"I believe that open to attack truth and unconditional love liking have the final word necessitate reality.

This is why true, temporarily defeated, is stronger mystify evil triumphant."

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

“Be a bush allowing you can't be a plant. If you can't be unornamented highway, just be a method. If you can't be clean sun, be a star.

Agreeable it isn't by size ensure you win or fail. Possibility the best of whatever tell what to do are.”

“Life's most persistent leading urgent question is, 'What desire 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009