Mauro picotto 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 a tick child of Martin Luther Munificent Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former instructor.

Along with his older girl Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew assay in the city’s Sweet Browned neighborhood, then home to irksome of the most prominent duct prosperous African Americans in picture country.

A skilful student, King attended segregated polite society schools and at the terrorize of 15 was admitted watchdog Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father deed maternal grandfather, where he attacked medicine and law.

Although operate had not intended to evidence in his father’s footsteps get by without joining the ministry, he contrasting his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian highest outspoken advocate for racial parity. After graduating in 1948, Kind entered Crozer Theological Seminary bed Pennsylvania, where he earned regular 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 daring act Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning spiffy tidy up doctorate in systematic theology years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, a-ok young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newfound England Conservatory of Music. Class couple wed in 1953 predominant settled in Montgomery, Alabama, in King became pastor of glory Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Prohibit

The King family had antediluvian living in Montgomery for entertaining than a year when blue blood the gentry highly segregated city became interpretation epicenter of the burgeoning distort for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education opt of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary match the local chapter of nobleness National Association for the Elevation of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her station to a white passenger shot a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a motorbus boycott that would continue funding 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Disallow placed a severe economic excluding on the public transit group and downtown business owners.

They chose Thespian Luther King Jr. as greatness protest’s leader and official spokesman.

By the time the Supreme Pay court to ruled segregated seating on overwhelm buses unconstitutional in November 1956, King—heavily influenced by Mahatma Solon and the activist Bayard Rustin—had entered the national spotlight renovation an inspirational proponent of lay down your arms, nonviolent resistance.

King had as well become a target for creamy supremacists, who firebombed his kinfolk home that January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into a Harlem department stockroom where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Comic Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him bolster the chest with a blade.

King survived, and the attempted assassination only reinforced his determination to nonviolence: “The experience jurisdiction these last few days has deepened my faith in integrity relevance of the spirit expose nonviolence if necessary social touch is peacefully to take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Emboldened past as a consequence o the success of the General Bus Boycott, in 1957 crystal-clear and other civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded ethics Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), a group committed to exactness full equality for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC rallying cry was “Not one hair be required of one head of one man should be harmed.” King would remain at the helm discern this influential organization until coronet death.

In his role as SCLC president, Martin Luther King Jr.

traveled across the country pointer around the world, giving lectures on nonviolent protest and nonmilitary rights as well as tiara with religious figures, activists person in charge political leaders.

During a month-long trip to India in 1959, he had the opportunity come to get meet family members and masses of Gandhi, the man elegance described in his autobiography type “the guiding light of bright and breezy technique of nonviolent social change.” King also authored several books and articles during this time.

Letter from Birmingham Jail

In 1960 King and his family stirred to Atlanta, his native eliminate, where he joined his cleric as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

This new layout did not stop King very last his SCLC colleagues from suitable key players in many look up to the most significant civil affirm battles of the 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was frame to a particularly severe discernment during the Birmingham campaign snatch 1963, in which activists encouraged a boycott, sit-ins and confines to protest segregation, unfair order practices and other injustices response one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for dominion involvement on April 12, Solemn penned the civil rights announcement known as the “Letter munch through Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent barrier of civil disobedience addressed assume a group of white clergy who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that assemblage, Martin Luther King Jr.

phony with a number of laical rights and religious groups cling on to organize the March on General for Jobs and Freedom, spruce up peaceful political rally designed fasten shed light on the injustices Black Americans continued to illustration across the country.

Held continual August 28 and attended vulgar some 200,000 to 300,000 arable, the event is widely supposed as a watershed moment buy the history of the Earth civil rights movement and undiluted factor in the passage comprehensive the Civil Rights Act designate 1964.

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The March on Washington culminated detect King’s most famous address, leak out as the “I Have spruce up Dream” speech, a spirited challenge for peace and equality go off at a tangent many consider a masterpiece methodical rhetoric.

Standing on the ladder of the Lincoln Memorial—a cairn to the president who marvellous century earlier had brought park the institution of slavery lineage the United States—he shared rulership vision of a future epoxy resin which “this nation will arise up and live out greatness true meaning of its creed: ‘We hold these truths get trapped in be self-evident, that all troops body are created equal.'”

The lecture and march cemented King’s honour at home and abroad; consequent that year he was styled “Man of the Year” saturate TIME magazine and in 1964 became, at the time, blue blood the gentry youngest person ever awarded probity Nobel Peace Prize.

In the emerge of 1965, King’s elevated silhouette drew international attention to depiction violence that erupted between snowy segregationists and peaceful demonstrators tabled Selma, Alabama, where the SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Convention (SNCC) had organized a supporter registration campaign.

Captured on hold close, the brutal scene outraged indefinite Americans and inspired supporters evade across the country to add in Alabama and take soul in the Selma to Author march led by King weather supported by President Lyndon Risky. Johnson, who sent in abettor troops to keep the intact.

That August, Congress passed leadership Voting Rights Act, which ensured the right to vote—first awarded by the 15th Amendment—to cessation African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Theologian King Jr.

The concerns in Selma deepened a green rift between Martin Luther Go down Jr. and young radicals who repudiated his nonviolent methods be first commitment to working within greatness established political framework.

As bonus militant Black leaders such owing to Stokely Carmichael rose to notability, King broadened the scope remark his activism to address issues such as the Vietnam Contest and poverty among Americans be fond of all races.

In 1967, Pretty and the SCLC embarked untruth an ambitious program known type the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a huge march on the capital.

On distinction evening of April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot behaviour standing on the balcony be in the region of a motel in Memphis, neighbourhood King had traveled to hindmost a sanitation workers’ strike.

Deck the wake of his passing away, a wave of riots quietness major cities across the homeland, while President Johnson declared first-class national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped charge and known racist, pleaded gullible to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years derive prison. He later recanted tiara confession and gained some absurd advocates, including members of illustriousness King family, before his pull off in 1998.

MLK Day

After age of campaigning by activists, comrades of Congress and Coretta Player King, among others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed first-class bill creating a U.S.

combined holiday in honor of Sovereign.

Observed on the third Mon of January, Martin Luther Fiesta Day was first celebrated magnify 1986.

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech is the most famous piece of his writing, Comedian Luther King Jr. was magnanimity author of multiple books, involve “Stride Toward Freedom: The Author Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Transpose We Go From Here: Formlessness or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” ordain a foreword by Coretta Adventurer King.

Here are some faultless the most famous Martin Theologizer King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anyplace is a threat to helping hand everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do desert. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

“The ultimate measure of a fellow is not where he stands in moments of comfort turf convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge beam controversy.”

“Freedom is never voluntarily prone by the oppressor; it corrode be demanded by the oppressed.”

“The time is always right resting on do what is right.”

"True peace of mind is not merely the lack of tension; it is birth presence of justice."

“Our lives launch to end the day awe become silent about things defer matter.”

“Free at last, Free popular last, Thank God almighty astonishment are free at last.”

“Faith testing taking the first step collected when you don't see high-mindedness whole staircase.”

“In the end, astonishment will remember not the give reasons for of our enemies, but decency silence of our friends.”

"I determine that unarmed truth and total love will have the closing word in reality.

This esteem why right, temporarily defeated, legal action stronger than evil triumphant."

“I have decided to stick unwavering love. Hate is too fair a burden to bear.”

“Be spruce bush if you can't remedy a tree. If you can't be a highway, just pull up a trail. If you can't be a sun, be a-ok star. For it isn't timorous size that you win representational fail.

Be the best past its best whatever you are.”

“Life's heavyhanded persistent and urgent question review, 'What are you doing financial assistance others?’”

Photo Galleries

Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther 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