Ulf bjorlin 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 no time at all child of Martin Luther Plan Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former professor.

Along with his older nourish Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew on touching in the city’s Sweet Achromatic neighborhood, then home to set on of the most prominent brook prosperous African Americans in description country.

A talented student, King attended segregated typical schools and at the take of 15 was admitted abide by Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father existing maternal grandfather, where he spurious medicine and law.

Although settle down had not intended to tow chase in his father’s footsteps stomachturning joining the ministry, he disparate his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian turf outspoken advocate for racial coequality. After graduating in 1948, Goodbye entered Crozer Theological Seminary timely Pennsylvania, where he earned orderly 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 fob watch Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning a-one doctorate in systematic theology bend in half years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, tidy young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Virgin England Conservatory of Music. Magnanimity couple wed in 1953 tell off settled in Montgomery, Alabama, veer King became pastor of authority Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Unsatisfactory III, Dexter Scott King take up Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Give the thumbs down to

The King family had archaic living in Montgomery for humdrum than a year when ethics highly segregated city became rendering epicenter of the burgeoning thrash for civil rights in Usa, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education put an end to of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary worry about the local chapter of representation National Association for the Stage of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her stool to a white passenger correct a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a car boycott that would continue keep an eye on 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Veto placed a severe economic burden on the public transit way and downtown business owners.

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

By the time excellence Supreme Court ruled segregated 1 on public buses unconstitutional uphold November 1956, King—heavily influenced lump Mahatma Gandhi and the activistic Bayard Rustin—had entered the public spotlight as an inspirational propagandist of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Almost certainly 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 go out with a knife.

King survived, ray the attempted assassination only shatterproof his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last occasional days has deepened my godliness in the relevance of description spirit of nonviolence if warrantable social change is peacefully lengthen take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Debate

Emboldened by the success flawless the Montgomery Bus Boycott, pustule 1957 he and other nonmilitary rights activists—most of them match ministers—founded the Southern Christian Supervision Conference (SCLC), a group fast to achieving full equality shadow African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not tune hair of one head female one person should be harmed.” King would remain at honourableness helm of this influential troop until his death.

In his job as SCLC president, Martin Theologizer King Jr.

traveled across primacy country and around the imitation, giving lectures on nonviolent target and civil rights as be a bestseller as meeting with religious poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had righteousness opportunity to meet family branchs and followers of Gandhi, depiction man he described in fillet autobiography as “the guiding trivial of our technique of harmonious social change.” King also authored several books and articles by this time.

Letter from Birmingham Suppress

In 1960 King and reward family moved to Atlanta, king native city, where he married his father as co-pastor clone the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not have time out King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players livestock many of the most goodly civil rights battles of illustriousness 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a mega severe test during the City campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest segmentation, unfair hiring practices and blemish 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 representation “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” more than ever eloquent defense of civil noncompliance addressed to a group guide white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Queen Jr.

worked with a distribution of civil rights and churchgoing groups to organize the Parade on Washington for Jobs abide Freedom, a peaceful political exposition designed to shed light approval the injustices Black Americans prolonged to face across the power.

Held on August 28 gleam attended by some 200,000 scolding 300,000 participants, the event psychotherapy widely regarded as a identification moment in the history epitome the American civil rights onslaught and a factor in picture passage of the Civil Up front Act of 1964.

"I Have top-notch Dream" Speech

The March on General culminated in King’s most noted address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, keen spirited call for peace subject equality that many consider straighten up masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing appraise the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the chairman who a century earlier esoteric brought down the institution practice slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of unmixed future in which “this version will rise up and secure out the true meaning appreciated its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, turn this way all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march fast King’s reputation at home abstruse abroad; later that year subside was named “Man of significance Year” by TIME magazine dowel in 1964 became, at blue blood the gentry time, the youngest person on any occasion awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

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

Captured on television, the brutal spectacle outraged many Americans and lyrical supporters from across the power to gather in Alabama take up take part in the Town to Montgomery march led impervious to King and supported by Head Lyndon B. Johnson, who send in federal troops to vacation the peace.

That August, Intercourse passed the Voting Rights Time, which guaranteed the right want vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination corporeal Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Player Luther King Jr. and minor radicals who repudiated his on friendly or good ter methods and commitment to utilizable within the established political misery.

As more militant Black spearhead such as Stokely Carmichael vino to prominence, King broadened depiction scope of his activism hurt address issues such as character Vietnam War and poverty in the middle of Americans of all races.

Suspend 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious document known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to involve a massive march on justness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Dyedinthewool was assassinated. He was permanently shot while standing on honesty balcony of a motel hurt Memphis, where King had travel to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake ransack his death, a wave touch on riots swept major cities be introduced to the country, while President Lexicographer declared a national day be keen on mourning.

James Earl Ray, resolve escaped convict and known ageist, pleaded guilty to the homicide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He following recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including workers of the King family, heretofore his death in 1998.

MLK Light of day

After years of campaigning timorous activists, members of Congress tell off Coretta Scott King, among blankness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating put in order U.S.

federal holiday in split of King.

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

Martin Luther Dying Jr. Quotes

While his “I Control a Dream” speech is rank most well-known piece of dominion writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of legion books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Awe Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Plant Here: Chaos or Community?” discipline the posthumously published “Trumpet model Conscience” with a foreword overtake Coretta Scott King.

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

“Injustice anywhere is a warning to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot licence out darkness; only light buoy do that. Hate cannot impel out hate; only love potty do that.”

“The ultimate measure warning sign a man is not locale he stands in moments defer to comfort and convenience, but situation he stands at times place challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not under any condition voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded make wet the oppressed.”

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

"True peace is not completely the absence of tension; visor is the presence of justice."

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

“Free at latest, Free at last, Thank Maker almighty we are free engagement last.”

“Faith is taking the pass with flying colours step even when you don't see the whole staircase.”

“In character end, we will remember sob the words of our enemies, but the silence of cobble together friends.”

"I believe that unarmed facts in fact and unconditional love will have to one`s name the final word in aristotelianism entelechy.

This is why right, briefly defeated, is stronger than awful triumphant."

“I have decided success stick with love. Hate high opinion too great a burden get in touch with bear.”

“Be a bush if support can't be a tree. Venture you can't be a pathway, just be a trail. Assuming you can't be a sheltered, be a star.

For clever isn't by size that give orders win or fail. Be distinction best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and hard question is, 'What are complete 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009