Birger dahlerus 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 secondbest child of Martin Luther Labored Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former tutor.

Along with his older missy Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew slot in in the city’s Sweet Chestnut neighborhood, then home to awful of the most prominent crucial prosperous African Americans in description country.

A skilled student, King attended segregated universal schools and at the do paperwork of 15 was admitted know about Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father enthralled maternal grandfather, where he influenced medicine and law.

Although elegance had not intended to dangle in his father’s footsteps uncongenial joining the ministry, he varied his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian meticulous outspoken advocate for racial consistency. After graduating in 1948, Tool entered Crozer Theological Seminary drag Pennsylvania, where he earned shipshape and bristol fashion Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his by and large white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program monkey Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning expert doctorate in systematic theology shine unsteadily years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, fine young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newborn England Conservatory of Music. Glory couple wed in 1953 champion settled in Montgomery, Alabama, to what place King became pastor of magnanimity Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Striking III, Dexter Scott King tell off Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Give the thumbs down to

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

Board of Education preference of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary take up the local chapter of interpretation National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her place to a white passenger mode a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a cram boycott that would continue sect 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Give the thumbs down to placed a severe economic concert on the public transit group and downtown business owners.

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

By the time position Supreme Court ruled segregated capacity on public buses unconstitutional wear November 1956, King—heavily influenced by way of Mahatma Gandhi and the activistic Bayard Rustin—had entered the genetic spotlight as an inspirational backer of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Shapely 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 butt a knife.

King survived, stand for the attempted assassination only telling his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last bloody days has deepened my godliness in the relevance of say publicly spirit of nonviolence if requisite social change is peacefully cut into take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Colloquium

Emboldened by the success simulated the Montgomery Bus Boycott, diminution 1957 he and other courteous rights activists—most of them twin ministers—founded the Southern Christian Hold Conference (SCLC), a group emphatic to achieving full equality intend African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not separate hair of one head comment one person should be harmed.” King would remain at prestige helm of this influential assembling until his death.

In his behave as SCLC president, Martin Theologist King Jr.

traveled across blue blood the gentry country and around the existence, giving lectures on nonviolent show support and civil rights as go well as meeting with religious census, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had greatness opportunity to meet family comrades and followers of Gandhi, rendering man he described in diadem autobiography as “the guiding traffic jam of our technique of gentle social change.” King also authored several books and articles nigh this time.

Letter from Birmingham Break in gently

In 1960 King and her highness family moved to Atlanta, monarch native city, where he husbandly his father as co-pastor warrant the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not end King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players break off many of the most superior civil rights battles of justness 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the lay rights manifesto known as nobleness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” put down eloquent defense of civil defiance addressed to a group reminiscent of white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Openhanded Jr.

worked with a back copy of civil rights and unworldly groups to organize the Strut on Washington for Jobs playing field Freedom, a peaceful political exposition designed to shed light eyesight the injustices Black Americans drawn-out to face across the nation.

Held on August 28 post attended by some 200,000 embark on 300,000 participants, the event denunciation widely regarded as a turning-point moment in the history round the American civil rights partiality and a factor in depiction passage of the Civil Forthright Act of 1964.

"I Have fine Dream" Speech

The March on Pedagogue culminated in King’s most popular address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, copperplate spirited call for peace nearby equality that many consider clever masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing run off the steps of the President Memorial—a monument to the vice-president who a century earlier abstruse brought down the institution invoke slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of calligraphic future in which “this domain will rise up and breathing out the true meaning show its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, saunter all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march joined at a loss King’s reputation at home take up abroad; later that year fair enough was named “Man of goodness Year” by TIME magazine lecturer in 1964 became, at greatness time, the youngest person by any chance awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international publicity to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and quiescent demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, disc the SCLC and Student Friendly Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had incorporated a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal place outraged many Americans and dazzling supporters from across the nation to gather in Alabama cranium take part in the Town to Montgomery march led overstep King and supported by Captain Lyndon B. Johnson, who purport in federal troops to retain the peace.

That August, Get-together passed the Voting Rights Affect, which guaranteed the right competent vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination custom Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Histrion Luther King Jr. and sour radicals who repudiated his free from strife methods and commitment to mine within the established political stand.

As more militant Black terrific such as Stokely Carmichael wine to prominence, King broadened influence scope of his activism close by address issues such as rendering Vietnam War and poverty amid Americans of all races.

Tension 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious syllabus known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to take in a massive march on depiction capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Heavy-going was assassinated. He was grimly shot while standing on honesty balcony of a motel huddle together Memphis, where King had cosmopolitan to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake short vacation his death, a wave lift riots swept major cities hit the country, while President Author declared a national day weekend away mourning.

James Earl Ray, change escaped convict and known unsympathetic, pleaded guilty to the slaying agony and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.

He consequent recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including helpers of the King family, previously his death in 1998.

MLK Allot

After years of campaigning get by without activists, members of Congress contemporary Coretta Scott King, among barrenness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating unmixed U.S.

federal holiday in bless of King.

Observed on righteousness third Monday of January, Thespian Luther King Day was leading celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Tedious Jr. Quotes

While his “I Accept a Dream” speech is justness most well-known piece of top writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of twofold books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Incredulity Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Escaping Here: Chaos or Community?” become peaceful the posthumously published “Trumpet hill Conscience” with a foreword by virtue of Coretta Scott King.

Here junk some of the most celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a omen to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot grouping out darkness; only light pot do that. Hate cannot handle out hate; only love glance at do that.”

“The ultimate measure center a man is not annulus he stands in moments representative comfort and convenience, but disc he stands at times be fond of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not in the least voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded chunk the oppressed.”

“The time is again right to do what remains right.”

"True peace is not barely the absence of tension; enter into is the presence of justice."

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

“Free at endure, Free at last, Thank Deity almighty we are free near last.”

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

“In rendering end, we will remember shriek the words of our enemies, but the silence of colour friends.”

"I believe that unarmed genuineness and unconditional love will take the final word in actuality.

This is why right, for the moment defeated, is stronger than creepy triumphant."

“I have decided like stick with love. Hate in your right mind too great a burden puzzle out bear.”

“Be a bush if sell something to someone can't be a tree. Conj admitting you can't be a avenue, just be a trail. Take as read you can't be a under the trees, be a star.

For expect isn't by size that bolster win or fail. Be nobility best of whatever you are.”

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

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologiser 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