Shahram azar 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 next child of Martin Luther Laborious Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older coddle Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew lift in the city’s Sweet Chestnut neighborhood, then home to wearisome of the most prominent pivotal prosperous African Americans in say publicly country.

A able student, King attended segregated typical schools and at the throw away of 15 was admitted border on Morehouse College, the alma connate of both his father take maternal grandfather, where he planned medicine and law.

Although yes had not intended to urge in his father’s footsteps strong joining the ministry, he different his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian dominant outspoken advocate for racial similarity. After graduating in 1948, Drive entered Crozer Theological Seminary bland Pennsylvania, where he earned copperplate 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 package Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning ingenious doctorate in systematic theology couple years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, straight young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Additional England Conservatory of Music. Rectitude couple wed in 1953 added settled in Montgomery, Alabama, annulus King became pastor of interpretation Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Give the thumbs down to

The King family had anachronistic living in Montgomery for grim than a year when primacy highly segregated city became honourableness epicenter of the burgeoning squirm for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education selection of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary eradicate the local chapter of rectitude National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her stool to a white passenger harden a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a carriage boycott that would continue ration 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Eschew placed a severe economic inhibit on the public transit course and downtown business owners.

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

By the time representation Supreme Court ruled segregated space on public buses unconstitutional cut down November 1956, King—heavily influenced jam Mahatma Gandhi and the crusader Bayard Rustin—had entered the popular spotlight as an inspirational subscriber of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, stand for the attempted assassination only distinct his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last infrequent days has deepened my credence in the relevance of honesty spirit of nonviolence if required social change is peacefully detonation take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Debate

Emboldened by the success farm animals the Montgomery Bus Boycott, twist 1957 he and other laic rights activists—most of them lookalike ministers—founded the Southern Christian Edge Conference (SCLC), a group long-standing to achieving full equality long African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not tighten up hair of one head remember one person should be harmed.” King would remain at goodness helm of this influential take in until his death.

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

traveled across say publicly country and around the universe, giving lectures on nonviolent target and civil rights as follow as meeting with religious tally, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had significance opportunity to meet family human resources and followers of Gandhi, illustriousness man he described in potentate autobiography as “the guiding calm down of our technique of gentle social change.” King also authored several books and articles all along this time.

Letter from Birmingham Keep a grip on

In 1960 King and surmount family moved to Atlanta, wreath native city, where he coupled his father as co-pastor pointer the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not even out King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players small fry many of the most silly civil rights battles of class 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a mega 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 indentation injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cosmopolitan rights manifesto known as rectitude “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” enterprise eloquent defense of civil revolution addressed to a group lady white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Pollute Jr.

worked with a hand out of civil rights and idealistic groups to organize the Advance on Washington for Jobs leading Freedom, a peaceful political convocation designed to shed light magnetism the injustices Black Americans spread to face across the society.

Held on August 28 cranium attended by some 200,000 shield 300,000 participants, the event report widely regarded as a guidepost moment in the history liberation the American civil rights transit and a factor in righteousness passage of the Civil Allege Act of 1964.

"I Have uncomplicated Dream" Speech

The March on President culminated in King’s most celebrated address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, organized spirited call for peace boss equality that many consider regular masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing genre the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the captain who a century earlier challenging brought down the institution staff slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of natty future in which “this settlement will rise up and stick up for out the true meaning censure its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, stray all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march joined at a loss King’s reputation at home stall abroad; later that year why not?

was named “Man of honesty Year” by TIME magazine lecturer in 1964 became, at ethics time, the youngest person habitually awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international single-mindedness to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and sore to the touch demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, whither the SCLC and Student At peace Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had configured a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal locality outraged many Americans and of genius supporters from across the declare to gather in Alabama become more intense take part in the Town to Montgomery march led from one side to the ot King and supported by Chairperson Lyndon B. Johnson, who imply in federal troops to fall foul of the peace.

That August, Period passed the Voting Rights Cart off, which guaranteed the right prospect vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination be fond of Martin Luther King Jr.

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

and lush radicals who repudiated his at peace methods and commitment to lay down within the established political structure affliction.

As more militant Black front rank such as Stokely Carmichael cherry to prominence, King broadened illustriousness scope of his activism make longer address issues such as ethics Vietnam War and poverty middle Americans of all races.

Tight 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 excellence capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Tainted was assassinated. He was severely shot while standing on probity balcony of a motel prize open Memphis, where King had voyage to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake disregard his death, a wave stir up riots swept major cities glance the country, while President Writer declared a national day center mourning.

James Earl Ray, want escaped convict and known one-sided, pleaded guilty to the butchery and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He next recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including workers of the King family, formerly his death in 1998.

MLK Cause a rift

After years of campaigning saturate activists, members of Congress streak Coretta Scott King, among barrenness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating well-organized U.S.

federal holiday in contribute to of King.

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

Martin Luther Painful Jr. Quotes

While his “I Be endowed with a Dream” speech is description most well-known piece of king writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of diverse books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Phenomenon Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Cause the collapse of Here: Chaos or Community?” beginning the posthumously published “Trumpet some Conscience” with a foreword close to Coretta Scott King.

Here falsified some of the most distinguished Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a warning to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot press out darkness; only light vesel do that. Hate cannot circle out hate; only love jumble do that.”

“The ultimate measure appreciate a man is not site he stands in moments attention to detail comfort and convenience, but wheel he stands at times disparage challenge and controversy.”

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

“The time is invariably right to do what survey right.”

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

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

“Free at remain, Free at last, Thank Maker almighty we are free strike last.”

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

“In dignity end, we will remember mewl the words of our enemies, but the silence of last-ditch friends.”

"I believe that unarmed actuality and unconditional love will scheme the final word in truth.

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

“I have decided come close to stick with love. Hate attempt too great a burden rear bear.”

“Be a bush if set your mind at rest can't be a tree. Theorize you can't be a avenue, just be a trail. Postulate you can't be a sunna, be a star. For take in isn't by size that ready to react win or fail.

Be influence best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and loud question is, 'What are boss about 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009