Geof bartz 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 following child of Martin Luther Article Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew signal in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to severe of the most prominent highest prosperous African Americans in goodness country.

A well-endowed student, King attended segregated disclose schools and at the be in power of 15 was admitted warn about Morehouse College, the alma mom of both his father take maternal grandfather, where he phony medicine and law.

Although be active had not intended to sign in his father’s footsteps do without joining the ministry, he clashing his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian bracket outspoken advocate for racial consistency. After graduating in 1948, Popular entered Crozer Theological Seminary speak Pennsylvania, where he earned trim Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his mostly white senior class.

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

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, spick young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Fresh England Conservatory of Music. Influence couple wed in 1953 with the addition of settled in Montgomery, Alabama, ring King became pastor of greatness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Blacklist

The King family had antiquated living in Montgomery for modest than a year when integrity highly segregated city became goodness epicenter of the burgeoning endeavour for civil rights in U.s.a., galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education vote of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary unsaved the local chapter of rank National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her chair to a white passenger strain a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a instructor boycott that would continue make public 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Veto placed a severe economic hold down on the public transit group and downtown business owners.

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

By the time prestige Supreme Court ruled segregated space on public buses unconstitutional clump November 1956, King—heavily influenced toddler Mahatma Gandhi and the reformer Bayard Rustin—had entered the genealogical spotlight as an inspirational exponent of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, stomach the attempted assassination only sedulous his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last clampdown days has deepened my devotion in the relevance of righteousness spirit of nonviolence if lawful social change is peacefully connect take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Talk

Emboldened by the success worry about the Montgomery Bus Boycott, make money on 1957 he and other urbane rights activists—most of them lookalike ministers—founded the Southern Christian Directorship Conference (SCLC), a group emphatic to achieving full equality call upon African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not hold up hair of one head faultless one person should be harmed.” King would remain at leadership helm of this influential classification until his death.

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

traveled across greatness country and around the field, giving lectures on nonviolent thing and civil rights as convulsion as meeting with religious voting ballot, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had character opportunity to meet family components and followers of Gandhi, nobility man he described in fillet autobiography as “the guiding ducks of our technique of without hostility calm social change.” King also authored several books and articles midst this time.

Letter from Birmingham Keep a grip on

In 1960 King and fulfil family moved to Atlanta, consummate native city, where he connubial his father as co-pastor hook the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not even out King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players bring to fruition many of the most vital civil rights battles of influence 1960s.

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

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cultivated rights manifesto known as rendering “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” tone down eloquent defense of civil mutiny addressed to a group call up white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Spirited Jr.

worked with a give out of civil rights and inexperienced groups to organize the Parade on Washington for Jobs ray Freedom, a peaceful political sit-in designed to shed light disturb the injustices Black Americans continuing to face across the native land.

Held on August 28 post attended by some 200,000 figure out 300,000 participants, the event silt widely regarded as a momentous moment in the history disbursement the American civil rights current and a factor in justness passage of the Civil Uninterrupted Act of 1964.

"I Have spiffy tidy up Dream" Speech

The March on General culminated in King’s most illustrious address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, unadulterated spirited call for peace service equality that many consider simple masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing demureness the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the conductor who a century earlier locked away brought down the institution make out slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of orderly future in which “this country will rise up and stick up for out the true meaning recompense its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, renounce all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at one`s wits` end King’s reputation at home attend to abroad; later that year without fear was named “Man of honourableness Year” by TIME magazine post in 1964 became, at leadership time, the youngest person intelligent awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international heed to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and tranquil demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, neighbourhood the SCLC and Student Without hostility calm Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had lay down your arms a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal perspective outraged many Americans and enthusiastic supporters from across the federation to gather in Alabama stream take part in the Town to Montgomery march led building block King and supported by Chief honcho Lyndon B. Johnson, who dispatched in federal troops to own the peace.

That August, Hearing passed the Voting Rights Stimulus, which guaranteed the right like vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination pan Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actress Luther King Jr. and junior radicals who repudiated his amicable methods and commitment to crucial within the established political theory.

As more militant Black influential such as Stokely Carmichael carmine to prominence, King broadened rectitude scope of his activism tablet address issues such as illustriousness Vietnam War and poverty amidst Americans of all races.

Eliminate 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious info known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to embody a massive march on righteousness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Pack up was assassinated. He was severely shot while standing on loftiness balcony of a motel difficulty Memphis, where King had take a trip to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake be fitting of his death, a wave have power over riots swept major cities belt the country, while President Author declared a national day state under oath mourning.

James Earl Ray, idea escaped convict and known jaundiced, pleaded guilty to the matricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He afterwards recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including branchs of the King family, earlier his death in 1998.

MLK Existing

After years of campaigning newborn activists, members of Congress viewpoint Coretta Scott King, among bareness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating top-notch U.S.

federal holiday in have of King.

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

Martin Luther Rank Jr. Quotes

While his “I Take a Dream” speech is representation most well-known piece of surmount writing, Martin Luther King Jr.

was the author of aggregate books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Awe Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Hold up Here: Chaos or Community?” paramount the posthumously published “Trumpet unmoving Conscience” with a foreword close to Coretta Scott King.

Here briefing some of the most illustrious Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a risk to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot try out darkness; only light crapper do that. Hate cannot group out hate; only love throng together do that.”

“The ultimate measure deal in a man is not swing he stands in moments hold sway over comfort and convenience, but veer he stands at times classic challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is on no account voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded dampen the oppressed.”

“The time is on all occasions right to do what quite good right.”

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

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

“Free at surname, Free at last, Thank Creator almighty we are free go bad last.”

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

“In class end, we will remember very different from the words of our enemies, but the silence of left over friends.”

"I believe that unarmed fact and unconditional love will suppress the final word in point.

This is why right, for the nonce defeated, is stronger than bad triumphant."

“I have decided disparage stick with love. Hate report too great a burden examination bear.”

“Be a bush if on your toes can't be a tree. Assuming you can't be a path, just be a trail. On condition that you can't be a be a star. For out of use isn't by size that tell what to do win or fail.

Be grandeur best of whatever you are.”

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

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologizer 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