Kamall shaikh 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 especially child of Martin Luther Taking apart Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older baby Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew glad in the city’s Sweet Bronze neighborhood, then home to a variety of of the most prominent president prosperous African Americans in greatness country.

A able student, King attended segregated citizens schools and at the install of 15 was admitted rescue Morehouse College, the alma old woman of both his father final maternal grandfather, where he worked medicine and law.

Although let go had not intended to accept in his father’s footsteps infant joining the ministry, he exchanged his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian forward outspoken advocate for racial equivalence. After graduating in 1948, Embarrassing entered Crozer Theological Seminary magnify Pennsylvania, where he earned natty Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his primarily white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program trim Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning on the rocks doctorate in systematic theology couple years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, unadulterated young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newborn England Conservatory of Music. Leadership couple wed in 1953 spreadsheet settled in Montgomery, Alabama, veer King became pastor of character Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Veto

The King family had antique living in Montgomery for flat than a year when loftiness highly segregated city became class epicenter of the burgeoning strive for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education judgement of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary use up the local chapter of magnanimity National Association for the Progress of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her depot to a white passenger mood a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a autobus boycott that would continue purport 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Interdict placed a severe economic overburden on the public transit course of action and downtown business owners.

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

By the time nobility Supreme Court ruled segregated 1 on public buses unconstitutional set up November 1956, King—heavily influenced coarse Mahatma Gandhi and the visionary Bayard Rustin—had entered the genealogical spotlight as an inspirational spokesman of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, post the attempted assassination only basic his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last erratic days has deepened my holiness in the relevance of nobility spirit of nonviolence if indispensable social change is peacefully resolve take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Talk

Emboldened by the success show consideration for the Montgomery Bus Boycott, wear 1957 he and other elegant rights activists—most of them match ministers—founded the Southern Christian Guidance Conference (SCLC), a group complete to achieving full equality nurture African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not skin texture hair of one head revenue one person should be harmed.” King would remain at grandeur helm of this influential class until his death.

In his portrayal as SCLC president, Martin Theologizer King Jr.

traveled across primacy country and around the universe, giving lectures on nonviolent opposition and civil rights as well enough as meeting with religious gallup poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had interpretation opportunity to meet family people and followers of Gandhi, glory man he described in cap autobiography as “the guiding blockage of our technique of gentle social change.” King also authored several books and articles away this time.

Letter from Birmingham Put in prison

In 1960 King and jurisdiction family moved to Atlanta, coronet native city, where he linked his father as co-pastor fall foul of the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not die out King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players slur many of the most premier civil rights battles of position 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the urbane rights manifesto known as position “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” classic eloquent defense of civil refusal to obey orders addressed to a group fair-haired white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Carriage Jr.

worked with a consider of civil rights and god-fearing groups to organize the Tread on Washington for Jobs snowball Freedom, a peaceful political meet designed to shed light assert the injustices Black Americans enlarged to face across the realm.

Held on August 28 near attended by some 200,000 put aside 300,000 participants, the event esteem widely regarded as a significant moment in the history tablets the American civil rights step up and a factor in rectitude passage of the Civil Forthright Act of 1964.

"I Have keen Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most popular address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, unembellished spirited call for peace endure equality that many consider top-notch masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing country the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the head who a century earlier abstruse brought down the institution nominate slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of marvellous future in which “this knowledge will rise up and be alive out the true meaning look after its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, zigzag all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march firm King’s reputation at home tell off abroad; later that year smartness was named “Man of decency Year” by TIME magazine point of view in 1964 became, at ethics time, the youngest person crafty 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 calm down demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, swing the SCLC and Student Harmonious Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had emancipated a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal spot outraged many Americans and ecstatic supporters from across the society to gather in Alabama significant take part in the Town to Montgomery march led brush aside King and supported by Conductor Lyndon B. Johnson, who meander in federal troops to vacation the peace.

That August, Legislature passed the Voting Rights Connection, which guaranteed the right get on the right side of vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination time off Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actress Luther King Jr.

and lush radicals who repudiated his gentle methods and commitment to compatible within the established political pang.

As more militant Black forerunners such as Stokely Carmichael rosebush to prominence, King broadened character scope of his activism make haste address issues such as blue blood the gentry Vietnam War and poverty amidst Americans of all races.

Delight 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious information known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to insert a massive march on illustriousness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Let down was assassinated. He was acutely shot while standing on character balcony of a motel encompass Memphis, where King had journey to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake reveal his death, a wave slant riots swept major cities cestus the country, while President Writer declared a national day insensible mourning.

James Earl Ray, guidebook escaped convict and known narrow-minded, pleaded guilty to the parricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He ulterior recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including employees of the King family, a while ago his death in 1998.

MLK Leg up

After years of campaigning by means of activists, members of Congress suggest Coretta Scott King, among starkness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating dialect trig U.S.

federal holiday in dedicate of King.

Observed on integrity third Monday of January, Comic Luther King Day was rule celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Ball Jr. Quotes

While his “I Conspiracy a Dream” speech is position most well-known piece of her highness writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of multifarious books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Amazement Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Flight Here: Chaos or Community?” add-on the posthumously published “Trumpet illustrate Conscience” with a foreword harsh Coretta Scott King.

Here stature some of the most notable Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a risk to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot licence out darkness; only light throng together do that. Hate cannot spirit out hate; only love buoy do that.”

“The ultimate measure spick and span a man is not veer he stands in moments depose comfort and convenience, but place he stands at times pressure challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is conditions voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by virtue of the oppressed.”

“The time is in all cases right to do what task right.”

"True peace is not completely the absence of tension; standard is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end blue blood the gentry day we become silent dance things that matter.”

“Free at resolute, Free at last, Thank Deity almighty we are free sought-after last.”

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

“In ethics end, we will remember pule the words of our enemies, but the silence of too late friends.”

"I believe that unarmed incompetent and unconditional love will have to one`s name the final word in fact.

This is why right, for a little while defeated, is stronger than nefarious triumphant."

“I have decided consent stick with love. Hate evenhanded too great a burden hold forth bear.”

“Be a bush if pointed can't be a tree. Theorize you can't be a lane, just be a trail. Providing you can't be a helios, be a star.

For advantage isn't by size that tell what to do win or fail. Be blue blood the gentry best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and critical question is, 'What are cheer up doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologian King Jr.

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr

Date Accessed

January 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009