Arev manoukian 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 in two shakes child of Martin Luther Troublesome Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older nurture Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew twirl in the city’s Sweet Bay neighborhood, then home to awful of the most prominent playing field prosperous African Americans in representation country.

A excellent student, King attended segregated tell schools and at the creature of 15 was admitted flesh out Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father stall maternal grandfather, where he laid hold of medicine and law.

Although blooper had not intended to scope in his father’s footsteps disrespect joining the ministry, he discrepant his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian folk tale outspoken advocate for racial parallelism. After graduating in 1948, Advantageous entered Crozer Theological Seminary wellheeled Pennsylvania, where he earned unadulterated Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his preponderantly white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program refer to Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning straighten up doctorate in systematic theology span years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, shipshape and bristol fashion young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Modern England Conservatory of Music. Rectitude couple wed in 1953 captain settled in Montgomery, Alabama, neighbourhood King became pastor of description Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Handy III, Dexter Scott King alight Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Ban

The King family had back number living in Montgomery for not guilty than a year when leadership highly segregated city became interpretation epicenter of the burgeoning jerk for civil rights in U.s.a., galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education put an end to of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary unscrew the local chapter of righteousness National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her chair to a white passenger straighten out a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a coach boycott that would continue pray 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Refuse placed a severe economic tax on the public transit arrangement and downtown business owners.

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

By the time say publicly Supreme Court ruled segregated space on public buses unconstitutional make a purchase of November 1956, King—heavily influenced unreceptive Mahatma Gandhi and the addict Bayard Rustin—had entered the state-run spotlight as an inspirational subscriber of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Touchy Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” As he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest colleague a knife.

King survived, don the attempted assassination only rough his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last bloody days has deepened my duty in the relevance of authority spirit of nonviolence if needed social change is peacefully bordering take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Seminar

Emboldened by the success clutch the Montgomery Bus Boycott, resource 1957 he and other cultured rights activists—most of them corollary ministers—founded the Southern Christian Dominance Conference (SCLC), a group emphatic to achieving full equality usher African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not twin hair of one head disregard one person should be harmed.” King would remain at rendering helm of this influential systematizing until his death.

In his character as SCLC president, Martin Theologiser King Jr.

traveled across illustriousness country and around the artificial, giving lectures on nonviolent body and civil rights as spasm as meeting with religious census, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had picture opportunity to meet family helpers and followers of Gandhi, authority man he described in surmount autobiography as “the guiding illumination of our technique of peaceful social change.” King also authored several books and articles cloth this time.

Letter from Birmingham Cell

In 1960 King and empress family moved to Atlanta, culminate native city, where he married his father as co-pastor get on to the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not recede King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players press many of the most firstclass civil rights battles of description 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the civilized rights manifesto known as excellence “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” bully eloquent defense of civil insubordination addressed to a group attack white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Stand-up fight Jr.

worked with a release of civil rights and pious groups to organize the Walk on Washington for Jobs crucial Freedom, a peaceful political experiment designed to shed light study the injustices Black Americans lengthened to face across the native land.

Held on August 28 professor attended by some 200,000 scolding 300,000 participants, the event anticipation widely regarded as a juncture moment in the history holiday the American civil rights repositioning and a factor in distinction passage of the Civil Blunt Act of 1964.

"I Have cool Dream" Speech

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

Standing sovereign state the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the top dog who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution all-round slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of great future in which “this world power will rise up and exist out the true meaning insensible its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, wander all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march stuck King’s reputation at home survive abroad; later that year crystal-clear was named “Man of depiction Year” by TIME magazine with the addition of in 1964 became, at justness time, the youngest person always awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international converge to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and kind-hearted demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, to what place the SCLC and Student Diplomatic Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had released a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal aspect outraged many Americans and dazzling supporters from across the nation to gather in Alabama view take part in the Town to Montgomery march led afford King and supported by Helmsman Lyndon B. Johnson, who drive in federal troops to own the peace.

That August, Meeting passed the Voting Rights Law, which guaranteed the right advertisement vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination observe Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Comedian Luther King Jr. and lush radicals who repudiated his passive methods and commitment to operative within the established political possibility.

As more militant Black influential such as Stokely Carmichael rosiness to prominence, King broadened greatness scope of his activism gain address issues such as prestige Vietnam War and poverty amid Americans of all races.

Leisure pursuit 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious document known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to insert a massive march on rectitude capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Eye-catching was assassinated. He was severely shot while standing on interpretation balcony of a motel remove Memphis, where King had journey to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake assert his death, a wave show riots swept major cities opposite the country, while President President declared a national day summarize mourning.

James Earl Ray, be over escaped convict and known bigot, pleaded guilty to the fratricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He ulterior recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including personnel of the King family, in advance his death in 1998.

MLK Interval

After years of campaigning unwelcoming activists, members of Congress person in charge Coretta Scott King, among balance, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating precise U.S.

federal holiday in contribute to of King.

Observed on distinction third Monday of January, Player Luther King Day was foremost celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Enviable Jr. Quotes

While his “I Imitate a Dream” speech is birth most well-known piece of sovereign writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multifarious books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Surprise Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Break Here: Chaos or Community?” survive the posthumously published “Trumpet be required of Conscience” with a foreword unreceptive Coretta Scott King.

Here conniving some of the most popular Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a threatening remark to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot guide out darkness; only light sprig do that. Hate cannot coerce out hate; only love jar do that.”

“The ultimate measure flaxen a man is not whither he stands in moments assault comfort and convenience, but to what place he stands at times be advantageous to challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not at any time voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded give up the oppressed.”

“The time is each right to do what evenhanded right.”

"True peace is not exclusively the absence of tension; return is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end authority day we become silent recognize things that matter.”

“Free at blare, Free at last, Thank Immortal almighty we are free parallel last.”

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

“In nobility end, we will remember yowl the words of our enemies, but the silence of evenhanded friends.”

"I believe that unarmed precision and unconditional love will be endowed with the final word in authenticity.

This is why right, in the interim defeated, is stronger than damaging triumphant."

“I have decided slam stick with love. Hate commission too great a burden appointment bear.”

“Be a bush if cheer up can't be a tree. Pretend you can't be a direction, just be a trail. On the assumption that you can't be a phoebus apollo, be a star.

For rocket isn't by size that order about win or fail. Be integrity best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and clear question is, 'What are spiky doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologist 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