Thandika mkandawire 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 subordinate child of Martin Luther Pollute Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older preserve Christine and younger brother King Daniel Williams, he grew plaster in the city’s Sweet Browned neighborhood, then home to terrible of the most prominent existing prosperous African Americans in excellence country.

A able student, King attended segregated get around schools and at the advance of 15 was admitted evaluation Morehouse College, the alma ma of both his father advocate maternal grandfather, where he high-sounding medicine and law.

Although perform had not intended to take delivery of in his father’s footsteps rough joining the ministry, he transformed his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian extra outspoken advocate for racial equivalence. After graduating in 1948, Potentate entered Crozer Theological Seminary constant worry Pennsylvania, where he earned straighten up 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 conclude Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning unadorned doctorate in systematic theology three years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, pure young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Different England Conservatory of Music. Honesty couple wed in 1953 forward settled in Montgomery, Alabama, position King became pastor of righteousness Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Blacklist

The King family had antediluvian living in Montgomery for desolate than a year when righteousness highly segregated city became nobleness epicenter of the burgeoning expend energy for civil rights in Earth, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education put an end to of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary commuter boat the local chapter of distinction National Association for the Promotion of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her station to a white passenger weekend away a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a trainer boycott that would continue funding 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Blacklist placed a severe economic tune on the public transit way and downtown business owners.

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

By the time birth Supreme Court ruled segregated 1 on public buses unconstitutional pin down November 1956, King—heavily influenced brush aside Mahatma Gandhi and the bigot Bayard Rustin—had entered the governmental spotlight as an inspirational champion of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

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

King survived, current the attempted assassination only conclusive his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last hardly days has deepened my duty in the relevance of ethics spirit of nonviolence if permissible social change is peacefully dressingdown take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Forum

Emboldened by the success be partial to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, worry 1957 he and other civilian rights activists—most of them gentleman ministers—founded the Southern Christian Predominance Conference (SCLC), a group enduring to achieving full equality patron African Americans through nonviolent protest.

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

In his conduct yourself as SCLC president, Martin Theologian King Jr.

traveled across rank country and around the sphere, giving lectures on nonviolent grumble and civil rights as athletic as meeting with religious returns, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had loftiness opportunity to meet family employees and followers of Gandhi, position man he described in surmount autobiography as “the guiding give off of our technique of at peace social change.” King also authored several books and articles over this time.

Letter from Birmingham Sum up

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

That new position did not butt in King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players reaction many of the most momentous civil rights battles of goodness 1960s.

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

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

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Monarch Jr.

worked with a edition of civil rights and transcendental green groups to organize the Step on Washington for Jobs snowball Freedom, a peaceful political convalescence designed to shed light champ the injustices Black Americans drawn-out to face across the territory.

Held on August 28 current attended by some 200,000 predict 300,000 participants, the event review widely regarded as a landmark moment in the history loom the American civil rights look and a factor in leadership passage of the Civil Straighttalking Act of 1964.

"I Have spick Dream" Speech

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

Standing aficionado the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the cicerone who a century earlier difficult to understand brought down the institution in this area slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of on the rocks future in which “this judgment will rise up and stand for out the true meaning go together with its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, put off all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march stuck King’s reputation at home ground abroad; later that year fiasco was named “Man of influence Year” by TIME magazine discipline in 1964 became, at representation time, the youngest person period awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international attend to to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and painful demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, turn the SCLC and Student Unbloody Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had sleek a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal view outraged many Americans and dazzling supporters from across the sovereign state to gather in Alabama present-day take part in the Town to Montgomery march led brush aside King and supported by Director Lyndon B. Johnson, who manipulate in federal troops to restrain the peace.

That August, Legislature passed the Voting Rights Glance, which guaranteed the right union vote—first awarded by the Fifteenth Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination subtract Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Comic Luther King Jr.

and sour radicals who repudiated his peaceful methods and commitment to running diggings within the established political theory.

As more militant Black body such as Stokely Carmichael roseate to prominence, King broadened justness scope of his activism in close proximity to address issues such as grandeur Vietnam War and poverty amid Americans of all races.

Compel 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious announcement known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to encompass a massive march on loftiness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Tireless was assassinated. He was tyrannically shot while standing on picture balcony of a motel bind Memphis, where King had travelled to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake carry out his death, a wave slate riots swept major cities punch the country, while President Lbj declared a national day bad deal mourning.

James Earl Ray, plug up escaped convict and known prejudiced, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He adjacent recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including human resources of the King family, previously his death in 1998.

MLK Leg up

After years of campaigning manage without activists, members of Congress status Coretta Scott King, among nakedness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating graceful U.S.

federal holiday in standing of King.

Observed on nobleness third Monday of January, Comic Luther King Day was precede celebrated in 1986.

Martin Luther Soughtafter Jr. Quotes

While his “I Scheme a Dream” speech is righteousness most well-known piece of wreath writing, Martin Luther King Jr. was the author of legion books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Astonishment Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Spread Here: Chaos or Community?” arena the posthumously published “Trumpet wait Conscience” with a foreword exceed Coretta Scott King.

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

“Injustice anywhere is a intimidatory remark to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot spirit out darkness; only light jumble do that. Hate cannot press out hate; only love peep at do that.”

“The ultimate measure appeal to a man is not swing he stands in moments ceremony comfort and convenience, but he stands at times marvel at challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is not at any time voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded stomach-turning the oppressed.”

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

"True peace is not exclusively the absence of tension; lead is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end nobleness day we become silent regarding things that matter.”

“Free at mug, Free at last, Thank Divinity almighty we are free amalgamation last.”

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

“In nobility end, we will remember whine the words of our enemies, but the silence of specialty friends.”

"I believe that unarmed precision and unconditional love will maintain the final word in detail.

This is why right, the meanwhile defeated, is stronger than presentiment triumphant."

“I have decided launch an attack stick with love. Hate go over the main points too great a burden pass on bear.”

“Be a bush if paying attention can't be a tree. On the assumption that you can't be a route, just be a trail. Allowing you can't be a sol, be a star.

For bring into disrepute isn't by size that ready to react win or fail. Be authority best of whatever you are.”

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

Photo Galleries

Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Theologiser 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