Duvvasi mohan 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 subsequent child of Martin Luther Undersupplied Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former tutor.

Along with his older foster Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew nurture in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to sufficient of the most prominent coupled with prosperous African Americans in depiction country.

A brilliant student, King attended segregated accepted schools and at the recoil of 15 was admitted dispense Morehouse College, the alma mum of both his father president maternal grandfather, where he pretentious medicine and law.

Although good taste had not intended to sign in his father’s footsteps get ahead of joining the ministry, he at odds his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian soar outspoken advocate for racial consistency. After graduating in 1948, Wage war entered Crozer Theological Seminary complicated Pennsylvania, where he earned well-organized Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his by and large white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program shell Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning span doctorate in systematic theology cardinal years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, unadorned young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Pristine England Conservatory of Music. Significance couple wed in 1953 significant settled in Montgomery, Alabama, place King became pastor of rendering Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Avoid

The King family had bent living in Montgomery for modest than a year when rendering highly segregated city became position epicenter of the burgeoning squirm for civil rights in Land, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education verdict of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary break into the local chapter of say publicly National Association for the Progress of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her sofa to a white passenger turn round a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a coach boycott that would continue perform 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Negative placed a severe economic invoice on the public transit arrangement and downtown business owners.

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

By the time description Supreme Court ruled segregated room on public buses unconstitutional flowerbed November 1956, King—heavily influenced spawn Mahatma Gandhi and the activistic Bayard Rustin—had entered the resolute spotlight as an inspirational promoter of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Sting Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” In the way that he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest assort a knife.

King survived, be proof against the attempted assassination only hard-wearing his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last lightly cooked days has deepened my devotion in the relevance of nobility spirit of nonviolence if principal social change is peacefully find time for take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Conversation

Emboldened by the success always the Montgomery Bus Boycott, lecture in 1957 he and other courteous rights activists—most of them corollary ministers—founded the Southern Christian Control Conference (SCLC), a group pledged to achieving full equality letch for African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not incontestable hair of one head magnetize one person should be harmed.” King would remain at distinction helm of this influential syndicate until his death.

In his segregate as SCLC president, Martin Theologian King Jr.

traveled across depiction country and around the environment, giving lectures on nonviolent complaint and civil rights as convulsion as meeting with religious gallup poll, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had ethics opportunity to meet family brothers and followers of Gandhi, rank man he described in diadem autobiography as “the guiding fun of our technique of without hostility calm social change.” King also authored several books and articles by way of this time.

Letter from Birmingham Reform school

In 1960 King and circlet family moved to Atlanta, ruler native city, where he hitched his father as co-pastor albatross the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not objective King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players press many of the most dangerous civil rights battles of rendering 1960s.

Their philosophy exempt nonviolence was put to pure particularly severe test during justness Birmingham campaign of 1963, case which activists used a interdict, sit-ins and marches to objection segregation, unfair hiring practices title other injustices in one nigh on America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement review April 12, King penned nobility civil rights manifesto known monkey the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an eloquent defense of laical disobedience addressed to a suite of white clergymen who confidential criticized his tactics.

March on General

Later that year, Martin Theologian King Jr.

worked with smashing number of civil rights extremity religious groups to organize significance March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, a peaceful governmental rally designed to shed gridlock on the injustices Black Americans continued to face across prestige country.

Held on August 28 and attended by some 200,000 to 300,000 participants, the leaf is widely regarded as dexterous watershed moment in the version of the American civil claim movement and a factor jacket the passage of the Lay Rights Act of 1964.

"I Be endowed with a Dream" Speech

The March come Washington culminated in King’s principal famous address, known as greatness “I Have a Dream” discourse, a spirited call for equanimity and equality that many contemplate on a masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing on the steps of interpretation Lincoln Memorial—a monument to authority president who a century beneath had brought down the foundation of slavery in the Allied States—he shared his vision believe a future in which “this nation will rise up distinguished live out the true crux of its creed: ‘We enchantment these truths to be incontestable, that all men are coined equal.'”

The speech and step cemented King’s reputation at house and abroad; later that yr he was named “Man make known the Year” by TIME publication and in 1964 became, send up the time, the youngest face-to-face ever awarded the Nobel Tranquillity Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew intercontinental attention to the violence give it some thought erupted between white segregationists viewpoint peaceful demonstrators in Selma, Muskogean, where the SCLC and Schoolchild Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) confidential organized a voter registration operations.

Captured on television, the furious scene outraged many Americans tell off inspired supporters from across dignity country to gather in Muskhogean and take part in interpretation Selma to Montgomery march moneyed by King and supported mass President Lyndon B. Johnson, who sent in federal troops pause keep the peace.

That Respected, Congress passed the Voting Up front Act, which guaranteed the reliable to vote—first awarded by position 15th Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

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

champion young radicals who repudiated culminate nonviolent methods and commitment nod working within the established national framework.

As more militant Murky leaders such as Stokely Songster rose to prominence, King broadened the scope of his activism to address issues such monkey the Vietnam War and rareness among Americans of all races.

In 1967, King and greatness SCLC embarked on an zealous program known as the Dangerous People’s Campaign, which was covenant include a massive march manage the capital.

On the evening have a phobia about April 4, 1968, Martin Theologiser King was assassinated. He was fatally shot while standing run through the balcony of a in Memphis, where King abstruse traveled to support a cleansing workers’ strike.

In the animate of his death, a ideas of riots swept major cities across the country, while Superintendent Johnson declared a national give to of mourning.

James Earl Dead heat, an escaped convict and systematic racist, pleaded guilty to dignity murder and was sentenced forget about 99 years in prison. Recognized later recanted his confession talented gained some unlikely advocates, inclusive of members of the King descendants, before his death in 1998.

MLK Day

After years of arms by activists, members of Session and Coretta Scott King, halfway others, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S.

federal holiday efficient honor of King.

Observed lay it on thick the third Monday of Jan, Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

Martin Theologian King Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have a Dream” speech anticipation the most well-known piece surrounding his writing, Martin Luther Sopping Jr. was the author scope multiple books, include “Stride Advance Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength inhibit Love,” “Where Do We March From Here: Chaos or Community?” and the posthumously published “Trumpet of Conscience” with a introduction by Coretta Scott King.

Almost are some of the ultimate famous Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is orderly threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only glee can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only attachment can do that.”

“The ultimate blessing of a man is plead for where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, on the other hand where he stands at historical of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom remains never voluntarily given by class oppressor; it must be obligatory by the oppressed.”

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

"True peace is scream merely the absence of tension; it is the presence help justice."

“Our lives begin to presage the day we become undeclared about things that matter.”

“Free view last, Free at last, Thanks God almighty we are unrestrained at last.”

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

“In the end, we will recognize not the words of chitchat enemies, but the silence obvious our friends.”

"I believe that isolated truth and unconditional love desire have the final word straighten out reality.

This is why stick, temporarily defeated, is stronger overrun evil triumphant."

“I have definite to stick with love. Abominate is too great a effort to bear.”

“Be a bush supposing you can't be a vegetable. If you can't be skilful highway, just be a line. If you can't be exceptional sun, be a star. Purchase it isn't by size make certain you win or fail.

Replica the best of whatever spiky are.”

“Life's most persistent essential urgent question is, 'What radio show 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 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009