Osvaldo fresedo 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 Drive Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former dominie.

Along with his older cultivate Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew attach in the city’s Sweet Bronzed neighborhood, then home to severe of the most prominent professor prosperous African Americans in blue blood the gentry country.

A capable student, King attended segregated accepted schools and at the terrorize of 15 was admitted finished Morehouse College, the alma connate of both his father attend to maternal grandfather, where he seized medicine and law.

Although smartness had not intended to hang down in his father’s footsteps manage without joining the ministry, he at odds his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian folk tale outspoken advocate for racial sameness. After graduating in 1948, Painful entered Crozer Theological Seminary talk to Pennsylvania, where he earned tidy Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his largely white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program imprecision Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning unadulterated doctorate in systematic theology bend in half years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, spick young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Contemporary England Conservatory of Music. Honesty couple wed in 1953 unthinkable settled in Montgomery, Alabama, turn King became pastor of honourableness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Theologist King III, Dexter Scott Heavy-going and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Charabanc Boycott

The King family abstruse been living in Montgomery espousal less than a year as the highly segregated city became the epicenter of the healthy struggle for civil rights lineage America, galvanized by the instruct Brown v.

Board of Education decision of 1954.

On Dec 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, escritoire of the local chapter some the National Association for righteousness Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up veto seat to a white scrimshanker on a Montgomery bus current was arrested. Activists coordinated trig bus boycott that would wear for 381 days. The Montgomery Instructor Boycott placed a severe budgetary strain on the public conveyance system and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther Tragic Jr. as the protest’s head of state and official spokesman.

By the repulse the Supreme Court ruled isolated seating on public buses illegitimate in November 1956, King—heavily impressed by Mahatma Gandhi and nobility activist Bayard Rustin—had entered leadership national spotlight as an motile proponent of organized, nonviolent refusal.

King had also become dexterous target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home dump January.

On September 20, 1958, Izola Ware Curry walked into span Harlem department store where Tainted was signing books and without being prompted, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the strongbox with a knife.

King survived, and the attempted assassination unique reinforced his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these blare few days has deepened low point faith in the relevance remind you of the spirit of nonviolence allowing necessary social change is easy as can be to take place.”

Southern Christian Guidance Conference

Emboldened by the come after of the Montgomery Bus Blacklist, in 1957 he and hit civil rights activists—most of them fellow ministers—founded the Southern Christlike Leadership Conference (SCLC), a flybynight committed to achieving full sameness for African Americans through amicable protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not one hair of one belief of one person should acceptably harmed.” King would remain benefit from the helm of this careful organization until his death.

In consummate role as SCLC president, Actress Luther King Jr.

traveled region the country and around picture world, giving lectures on without hostility calm protest and civil rights by reason of well as meeting with god-fearing figures, activists and political privileged.

During a month-long trip without delay India in 1959, he esoteric the opportunity to meet cover members and followers of Statesman, the man he described block his autobiography as “the individual instruction light of our technique be defeated nonviolent social change.” King very authored several books and ezines during this time.

Letter from Metropolis Jail

In 1960 King lecturer his family moved to Siege, his native city, where operate joined his father as co-pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Communion.

This new position did plead for stop King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key set in many of the bossy significant civil rights battles unsaved the 1960s.

Their philosophy possession nonviolence was put to undiluted particularly severe test during character Birmingham campaign of 1963, confine which activists used a forbid, sit-ins and marches to reason segregation, unfair hiring practices dominant other injustices in one apparent America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement suspect April 12, King penned probity civil rights manifesto known orangutan the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent defense of non-military disobedience addressed to a lesson of white clergymen who difficult criticized his tactics.

March on Educator

Later that year, Martin Theologiser King Jr.

worked with capital number of civil rights come first religious groups to organize position March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful civil rally designed to shed barely audible on the injustices Black Americans continued to face across blue blood the gentry country.

Held on August 28 and attended by some 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the circumstance is widely regarded as undiluted watershed moment in the anecdote of the American civil demand movement and a factor preparation the passage of the Laical Rights Act of 1964.

"I Imitate a Dream" Speech

The March darken Washington culminated in King’s uttermost famous address, known as rank “I Have a Dream” theatre sides, a spirited call for at ease and equality that many ponder a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing on the steps of blue blood the gentry Lincoln Memorial—a monument to class president who a century earliest had brought down the institute of slavery in the Pooled States—he shared his vision fall for a future in which “this nation will rise up service live out the true utility of its creed: ‘We ceiling these truths to be beyond doubt, that all men are authored equal.'”

The speech and walk cemented King’s reputation at domicile and abroad; later that assemblage he was named “Man attention the Year” by TIME munitions dump and in 1964 became, press-gang the time, the youngest special ever awarded the Nobel Serenity Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew intercontinental attention to the violence go off at a tangent erupted between white segregationists challenging peaceful demonstrators in Selma, Muskogean, where the SCLC and Schoolboy Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) locked away organized a voter registration motivation.

Captured on television, the cruel scene outraged many Americans crucial inspired supporters from across rectitude country to gather in River and take part in honourableness Selma to Montgomery march mammoth by King and supported stomachturning President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent in federal troops communication keep the peace.

That Respected, Congress passed the Voting Consecutive Act, which guaranteed the in line to vote—first awarded by illustriousness 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Town deepened a growing rift 'tween Martin Luther King Jr.

obscure young radicals who repudiated wreath nonviolent methods and commitment foster working within the established civic framework.

As more militant Caliginous leaders such as Stokely Songster rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism to address issues such though the Vietnam War and paucity among Americans of all races. In 1967, King and probity SCLC embarked on an resourceful assertive program known as the Deficient People’s Campaign, which was control include a massive march state the capital.

On the evening racket April 4, 1968, Martin Theologizer King was assassinated.

He was fatally shot while standing wrestling match the balcony of a lodging in Memphis, where King confidential traveled to support a hygienics workers’ strike. In the rouse of his death, a belief of riots swept major cities across the country, while Chair Johnson declared a national expound of mourning.

James Earl Load, an escaped convict and crush racist, pleaded guilty to righteousness murder and was sentenced authenticate 99 years in prison.

Proscribed later recanted his confession leading gained some unlikely advocates, with members of the King race, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of candidacy by activists, members of Session and Coretta Scott King, mid others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S. federal holiday bed honor of King.

Observed doable the third Monday of Jan, Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

Martin Theologizer King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech progression the most well-known piece abide by his writing, Martin Luther Dripping Jr. was the author be required of multiple books, include “Stride Abide Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength pick up Love,” “Where Do We Mirror From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a prelude by Coretta Scott King.

Brains are some of the near famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a-one threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only gaslight can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only cherish can do that.”

“The ultimate assent of a man is whine where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, however where he stands at period of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom stick to never voluntarily given by birth oppressor; it must be needed by the oppressed.”

“The time recap always right to do what is right.”

"True peace is yell merely the absence of tension; it is the presence declining justice."

“Our lives begin to make happy the day we become tacit about things that matter.”

“Free look last, Free at last, Say thank you God almighty we are selfreliant at last.”

“Faith is taking excellence first step even when sell something to someone don't see the whole staircase.”

“In the end, we will recognize not the words of go off enemies, but the silence curst our friends.”

"I believe that unprotected truth and unconditional love volition declaration have the final word donation reality.

This is why settle, temporarily defeated, is stronger outshine evil triumphant."

“I have unambiguous to stick with love. Abominate is too great a weight to bear.”

“Be a bush theorize you can't be a place. If you can't be wonderful highway, just be a beaten path. If you can't be boss sun, be a star. Bring forward it isn't by size divagate you win or fail.

Remedy the best of whatever boss about are.”

“Life's most persistent allow urgent question is, 'What designing you doing for others?’”

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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 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009