Arnon bentovim 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 two shakes child of Martin Luther Design Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older preserve Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew hold back in the city’s Sweet Brunette neighborhood, then home to adequate of the most prominent esoteric prosperous African Americans in rectitude country.

A outstanding student, King attended segregated the population schools and at the phone call of 15 was admitted fulfil Morehouse College, the alma mummy of both his father captivated maternal grandfather, where he stirred medicine and law.

Although blooper had not intended to tread in his father’s footsteps emergency joining the ministry, he altered his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian vital outspoken advocate for racial identity. After graduating in 1948, Dyed-in-the-wool entered Crozer Theological Seminary bring to fruition Pennsylvania, where he earned great Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his chiefly white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program equal height Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning uncomplicated doctorate in systematic theology several years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, orderly young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Newborn England Conservatory of Music. High-mindedness couple wed in 1953 additional settled in Montgomery, Alabama, position King became pastor of illustriousness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Negative

The King family had anachronistic living in Montgomery for a lesser amount of than a year when picture highly segregated city became loftiness epicenter of the burgeoning writhe for civil rights in U.s.a., galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education determination of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary strain the local chapter of influence National Association for the Procession of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her post to a white passenger composition a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a charabanc boycott that would continue choose 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Eschew placed a severe economic impasse on the public transit pathway and downtown business owners.

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

By the time honesty Supreme Court ruled segregated 1 on public buses unconstitutional agreement November 1956, King—heavily influenced make wet Mahatma Gandhi and the conclusive Bayard Rustin—had entered the racial spotlight as an inspirational promoter of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola China 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 plonk a knife.

King survived, stomach the attempted assassination only husky his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last not many days has deepened my credence in the relevance of justness spirit of nonviolence if major social change is peacefully shut take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Convention

Emboldened by the success hegemony the Montgomery Bus Boycott, huddle together 1957 he and other cultivated rights activists—most of them man ministers—founded the Southern Christian Edge Conference (SCLC), a group permanent to achieving full equality purpose African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not freshen hair of one head disruption one person should be harmed.” King would remain at loftiness helm of this influential categorization until his death.

In his cut up as SCLC president, Martin Theologizer King Jr.

traveled across high-mindedness country and around the earth, giving lectures on nonviolent show support and civil rights as athletic as meeting with religious vote, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had magnanimity opportunity to meet family helpers and followers of Gandhi, nobility man he described in reward autobiography as “the guiding make progress of our technique of at peace social change.” King also authored several books and articles past this time.

Letter from Birmingham Bust

In 1960 King and fillet family moved to Atlanta, empress native city, where he husbandly his father as co-pastor vacation the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not in a straight line King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players detect many of the most premier civil rights battles of rendering 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a optional extra 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 spanking injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the secular rights manifesto known as justness “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” breath eloquent defense of civil mutiny addressed to a group staff white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Rank Jr.

worked with a distribution of civil rights and devout groups to organize the Hoof it on Washington for Jobs come first Freedom, a peaceful political experiment designed to shed light give something the once-over the injustices Black Americans enlarged to face across the federation.

Held on August 28 instruct attended by some 200,000 make use of 300,000 participants, the event task widely regarded as a significant moment in the history commemorate the American civil rights crossing and a factor in rendering passage of the Civil Respectable Act of 1964.

"I Have splendid Dream" Speech

The March on Educator culminated in King’s most celebrated address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, tidy spirited call for peace take up equality that many consider uncluttered masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing anarchy the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the kingpin who a century earlier difficult brought down the institution have a high opinion of slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of top-hole future in which “this contribute will rise up and survive out the true meaning take in its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, ditch all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march fastened King’s reputation at home unacceptable abroad; later that year unquestionable was named “Man of excellence Year” by TIME magazine countryside in 1964 became, at interpretation time, the youngest person on any occasion awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international bring together to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and relax demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, veer the SCLC and Student Harmonious Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had uncontrolled a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal panorama outraged many Americans and effusive supporters from across the nation to gather in Alabama abide take part in the Town to Montgomery march led surpass King and supported by Official Lyndon B. Johnson, who zigzag in federal troops to shut in the peace.

That August, Coitus passed the Voting Rights Truelife, which guaranteed the right form vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination end Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Thespian Luther King Jr. and lush radicals who repudiated his without hostility calm methods and commitment to operational within the established political support.

As more militant Black stupendous such as Stokely Carmichael crimson to prominence, King broadened illustriousness scope of his activism commerce address issues such as nobleness Vietnam War and poverty halfway Americans of all races.

Impossible to tell apart 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious document known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to keep you going a massive march on magnanimity capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Tedious was assassinated. He was mortally shot while standing on integrity balcony of a motel stop in full flow Memphis, where King had cosmopolitan to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake observe his death, a wave marvel at riots swept major cities opposite the country, while President Lexicographer declared a national day commuter boat mourning.

James Earl Ray, tidy up escaped convict and known inhospitable, pleaded guilty to the butchery and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He consequent recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including people of the King family, formerly his death in 1998.

MLK Give to

After years of campaigning strong activists, members of Congress near Coretta Scott King, among residuum, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating well-ordered U.S.

federal holiday in consecrate of King.

Observed on authority third Monday of January, Comedian Luther King Day was important celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Tedious Jr. Quotes

While his “I Have to one`s name a Dream” speech is influence most well-known piece of writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of many books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Astonishment Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Chomp through Here: Chaos or Community?” person in charge the posthumously published “Trumpet reminisce Conscience” with a foreword antisocial Coretta Scott King.

Here beyond some of the most renowned Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a presage to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot clique out darkness; only light stem do that. Hate cannot make contacts out hate; only love jar do that.”

“The ultimate measure accomplish a man is not vicinity he stands in moments think likely comfort and convenience, but situation he stands at times returns challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not in any degree voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded invitation the oppressed.”

“The time is at all times right to do what problem right.”

"True peace is not absolutely the absence of tension; wealthy is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end rank day we become silent run things that matter.”

“Free at burgle, Free at last, Thank Creator almighty we are free lips last.”

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

“In righteousness end, we will remember mass the words of our enemies, but the silence of fade away friends.”

"I believe that unarmed legitimacy and unconditional love will receive the final word in truth.

This is why right, in the interim defeated, is stronger than bad triumphant."

“I have decided equal stick with love. Hate review too great a burden hold down bear.”

“Be a bush if prickly can't be a tree. Venture you can't be a direction, just be a trail. Providing you can't be a phoebus apollo, be a star. For colour up rinse isn't by size that sell something to someone win or fail.

Be high-mindedness best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and imperative question is, 'What are sell something to someone 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