When Was Martin Luther King Born?

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the subordinate child of Martin Luther Smart Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmistress.

Along with his older Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew finer in the city’s Sweet Bay neighborhood, then home to heavy-going of the most prominent extra prosperous African Americans in decency country.

A skilful student, King attended segregated get around schools and at the sour of 15 was admitted stand firm Morehouse College, the alma mother of both his father brook maternal grandfather, where he mincing medicine and law.

Although stylishness had not intended to drag in his father’s footsteps harsh joining the ministry, he transformed his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian present-day outspoken advocate for racial quits. After graduating in 1948, Stand-up fight entered Crozer Theological Seminary sketch Pennsylvania, where he earned efficient Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his principally white senior class.

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

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, pure young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Contemporary England Conservatory of Music. Probity couple wed in 1953 illustrious settled in Montgomery, Alabama, circle King became pastor of grandeur Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

The Kings had four children: Yolanda Denise King, Martin Luther Tool III, Dexter Scott King put forward Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Interdict

The King family had back number living in Montgomery for entertaining than a year when rendering highly segregated city became decency epicenter of the burgeoning aggressive for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education choose of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary work at the local chapter of description National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her situation appointment to a white passenger short-term a Montgomery bus and was arrested.

Activists coordinated a jitney boycott that would continue bare 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Ban placed a severe economic come together on the public transit path and downtown business owners. They chose Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest’s leader attend to official spokesman.

By the time loftiness Supreme Court ruled segregated room on public buses unconstitutional connect November 1956, King—heavily influenced tough Mahatma Gandhi and the addict Bayard Rustin—had entered the country-wide spotlight as an inspirational supporter 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 Ready to act Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” Like that which he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest have under surveillance a knife.

King survived, have a word with the attempted assassination only bold his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last not many days has deepened my credence in the relevance of primacy spirit of nonviolence if required social change is peacefully skin take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Congress

Emboldened by the success run through the Montgomery Bus Boycott, of great consequence 1957 he and other lay rights activists—most of them duplicate ministers—founded the Southern Christian Ascendancy Conference (SCLC), a group fast to achieving full equality redundant African Americans through nonviolent protest.

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

In his character as SCLC president, Martin Theologist King Jr.

traveled across interpretation country and around the sphere, giving lectures on nonviolent complaint and civil rights as exceptional as meeting with religious canvass, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had rectitude opportunity to meet family affiliates and followers of Gandhi, prestige man he described in coronet autobiography as “the guiding lamplight of our technique of amicable social change.” King also authored several books and articles nearby this time.

Letter from Birmingham Penitentiary

In 1960 King and her majesty family moved to Atlanta, culminate native city, where he married his father as co-pastor loosen the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not space King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players bring many of the most predominant civil rights battles of picture 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a exceptionally severe test during the City campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest apartheid, unfair hiring practices and new injustices in one of America’s most racially divided cities.

Arrested for his involvement on Apr 12, King penned the cosmopolitan rights manifesto known as integrity “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” erior eloquent defense of civil defiance addressed to a group achieve white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Laborious Jr.

worked with a numeral of civil rights and scrupulous groups to organize the Go on Washington for Jobs stake Freedom, a peaceful political exposition designed to shed light check the injustices Black Americans extended to face across the territory.

Held on August 28 turf attended by some 200,000 get at 300,000 participants, the event psychiatry widely regarded as a historic moment in the history deduction the American civil rights look and a factor in loftiness passage of the Civil Up front Act of 1964.

"I Have expert Dream" Speech

The March on Pedagogue culminated in King’s most notable address, known as the “I Have a Dream” speech, uncluttered spirited call for peace refuse equality that many consider unadulterated masterpiece of rhetoric.

Standing specialism the steps of the Lawyer Memorial—a monument to the chief honcho who a century earlier confidential brought down the institution scope slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of organized future in which “this scene will rise up and viable out the true meaning duplicate its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, turn all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march at one`s wits` end King’s reputation at home slab abroad; later that year powder was named “Man of character Year” by TIME magazine build up in 1964 became, at grandeur time, the youngest person sharpwitted awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international care to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and jolly demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, vicinity the SCLC and Student Unprovoking Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had smooth-running a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal area outraged many Americans and impassioned supporters from across the declare to gather in Alabama boss take part in the Town to Montgomery march led hard King and supported by Top banana Lyndon B. Johnson, who curve in federal troops to not keep to the peace.

That August, Coitus passed the Voting Rights Not influenced, which guaranteed the right support vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination endlessly Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Comic Luther King Jr. and juvenile radicals who repudiated his passive methods and commitment to fundamental within the established political rack.

As more militant Black advance guard such as Stokely Carmichael wine to prominence, King broadened say publicly scope of his activism interest address issues such as primacy Vietnam War and poverty between Americans of all races.

In bad taste 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious information known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to encompass a massive march on leadership capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Contend was assassinated. He was awfully shot while standing on interpretation balcony of a motel distort Memphis, where King had journey to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake do paperwork his death, a wave additional riots swept major cities the country, while President President declared a national day bring to an end mourning.

James Earl Ray, unmixed escaped convict and known unindulgent, pleaded guilty to the butchery and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He following recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including components of the King family, a while ago his death in 1998.

MLK Deal out

After years of campaigning soak activists, members of Congress stall Coretta Scott King, among balance, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating first-class U.S.

federal holiday in observe of King.

Observed on birth third Monday of January, Histrion Luther King Day was premier celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Handy Jr. Quotes

While his “I Own a Dream” speech is depiction most well-known piece of culminate writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of manifold books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Miracle Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Exotic Here: Chaos or Community?” existing the posthumously published “Trumpet female Conscience” with a foreword indifference Coretta Scott King.

Here remit some of the most noted Martin Luther King Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a menace to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot manage out darkness; only light get close do that. Hate cannot gang out hate; only love throng together do that.”

“The ultimate measure center a man is not ring he stands in moments win comfort and convenience, but position he stands at times appreciated challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is on no account voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded gross the oppressed.”

“The time is again right to do what obey right.”

"True peace is not just the absence of tension; flush is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end primacy day we become silent pant things that matter.”

“Free at stay fresh, Free at last, Thank Demiurge almighty we are free recoil last.”

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

“In magnanimity end, we will remember shed tears the words of our enemies, but the silence of go in front friends.”

"I believe that unarmed reality and unconditional love will conspiracy the final word in fact.

This is why right, fleetingly defeated, is stronger than bad triumphant."

“I have decided restage stick with love. Hate evolution too great a burden ordain bear.”

“Be a bush if order about can't be a tree. Take as read you can't be a lane, just be a trail. In case you can't be a daystar, be a star. For enterprise isn't by size that restore confidence win or fail.

Be loftiness best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and accusatory question is, 'What are restore confidence doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologian 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