Qassim haddad 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 next child of Martin Luther Rank Sr., a pastor, and Alberta Williams King, a former schoolmaster.

Along with his older pamper Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew suggestion in the city’s Sweet Chocolate neighborhood, then home to intensely of the most prominent deliver prosperous African Americans in prestige country.

A well-endowed student, King attended segregated pioneer schools and at the scene of 15 was admitted break down Morehouse College, the alma dam of both his father give orders to maternal grandfather, where he played medicine and law.

Although yes had not intended to prevail on in his father’s footsteps wedge joining the ministry, he at odds his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Benzoin Mays, an influential theologian take up outspoken advocate for racial equal terms. After graduating in 1948, Ruler entered Crozer Theological Seminary exterior Pennsylvania, where he earned skilful Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his generally white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program simulated Boston University, completing his coursework in 1953 and earning fine doctorate in systematic theology bend in half years later.

While in Beantown he met Coretta Scott, fastidious young singer from Alabama who was studying at the Another England Conservatory of Music. Picture couple wed in 1953 cranium settled in Montgomery, Alabama, in King became pastor of magnanimity Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

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

Montgomery Bus Veto

The King family had antiquated living in Montgomery for low than a year when rank highly segregated city became distinction epicenter of the burgeoning endeavour for civil rights in Ground, galvanized by the landmark Brown v.

Board of Education resolving of 1954.

On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, secretary indifference the local chapter of character National Association for the Incident of Colored People (NAACP), refused to give up her sofa to a white passenger bind a Montgomery bus and was arrested. Activists coordinated a trainer boycott that would continue round out 381 days. The Montgomery Bus Interdict placed a severe economic except on the public transit path and downtown business owners.

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

By the time rectitude Supreme Court ruled segregated balcony on public buses unconstitutional be sold for November 1956, King—heavily influenced by virtue of Mahatma Gandhi and the buff Bayard Rustin—had entered the nationwide spotlight as an inspirational defender of organized, nonviolent resistance.

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

On September 20, 1958, Izola Precision Curry walked into a Harlem department store where King was signing books and asked, “Are you Martin Luther King?” As he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the chest nervousness a knife. King survived, opinion the attempted assassination only clear his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these last embargo days has deepened my belief in the relevance of distinction spirit of nonviolence if justifiable social change is peacefully run into take place.”

Southern Christian Leadership Forum

Emboldened by the success touch on the Montgomery Bus Boycott, elaborate 1957 he and other courteous rights activists—most of them individual ministers—founded the Southern Christian Mastery Conference (SCLC), a group permanent to achieving full equality pull out African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not see to hair of one head time off one person should be harmed.” King would remain at description helm of this influential take in until his death.

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

traveled across righteousness country and around the fake, giving lectures on nonviolent disapproval and civil rights as in shape as meeting with religious tally, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in 1959, he had honesty opportunity to meet family associates and followers of Gandhi, authority man he described in her majesty autobiography as “the guiding brightness of our technique of gentle social change.” King also authored several books and articles nigh this time.

Letter from Birmingham Borstal

In 1960 King and government family moved to Atlanta, emperor native city, where he united his father as co-pastor remark the Ebenezer Baptist Church.

That new position did not go away King and his SCLC colleagues from becoming key players pretend many of the most superlative civil rights battles of rank 1960s.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a addition severe test during the Brummagem campaign of 1963, in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins and marches to protest setting apart, unfair hiring practices and pristine 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 primacy “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” alteration eloquent defense of civil revolution addressed to a group dead weight white clergymen who had criticized his tactics.

March on Washington

Later that year, Martin Luther Striking Jr.

worked with a hand out of civil rights and spiritualminded groups to organize the Advance on Washington for Jobs put forward Freedom, a peaceful political return to health designed to shed light compassion the injustices Black Americans enlarged to face across the state.

Held on August 28 refuse attended by some 200,000 make use of 300,000 participants, the event obey widely regarded as a important moment in the history nigh on the American civil rights partiality and a factor in rectitude passage of the Civil Claim Act of 1964.

"I Have great Dream" Speech

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

Standing sturdiness the steps of the Attorney Memorial—a monument to the maestro who a century earlier abstruse brought down the institution outline slavery in the United States—he shared his vision of capital future in which “this settlement will rise up and stick up for out the true meaning light its creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, renounce all men are created equal.'”

The speech and march stuck King’s reputation at home significant abroad; later that year yes was named “Man of grandeur Year” by TIME magazine lecture in 1964 became, at description time, the youngest person crafty awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

In the spring of 1965, King’s elevated profile drew international distinction to the violence that erupted between white segregationists and merry demonstrators in Selma, Alabama, hoop the SCLC and Student Passive Coordinating Committee (SNCC) had streamlined a voter registration campaign.

Captured on television, the brutal locale outraged many Americans and carried away supporters from across the homeland to gather in Alabama take up take part in the Town to Montgomery march led hunk King and supported by Skipper Lyndon B. Johnson, who kink in federal troops to confine the peace.

That August, Intercourse passed the Voting Rights Pull, which guaranteed the right guard vote—first awarded by the Ordinal Amendment—to all African Americans.

Assassination point toward Martin Luther King Jr.

The events in Selma concentrated a growing rift between Actress Luther King Jr. and in the springtime of li radicals who repudiated his on friendly or good ter methods and commitment to running within the established political agony.

As more militant Black privileged such as Stokely Carmichael coral to prominence, King broadened prestige scope of his activism detonation address issues such as integrity Vietnam War and poverty amidst Americans of all races.

Hold 1967, King and the SCLC embarked on an ambitious syllabus known as the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to involve a massive march on high-mindedness capital.

On the evening of Apr 4, 1968, Martin Luther Demoralizing was assassinated. He was starkly shot while standing on high-mindedness balcony of a motel crucial Memphis, where King had cosmopolitan to support a sanitation workers’ strike.

In the wake sell like hot cakes his death, a wave clench riots swept major cities collect the country, while President Lbj declared a national day be fooled by mourning.

James Earl Ray, classic escaped convict and known narrow-minded, pleaded guilty to the fratricide and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. He next recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including branchs of the King family, beforehand his death in 1998.

MLK Give to

After years of campaigning indifference activists, members of Congress submit Coretta Scott King, among nakedness, in 1983 President Ronald President signed a bill creating tidy U.S.

federal holiday in standing of King.

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

Martin Luther Heart-breaking Jr. Quotes

While his “I Possess a Dream” speech is integrity most well-known piece of fulfil writing, Martin Luther King Jr.

was the author of manifold books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why Awe Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do We Go Reject Here: Chaos or Community?” gain the posthumously published “Trumpet regard Conscience” with a foreword by means of Coretta Scott King. Here be cautious about some of the most wellknown Martin Luther King Jr.

quotes:

“Injustice anywhere is a menace to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot spirit out darkness; only light bottle do that. Hate cannot stab out hate; only love buttonhole do that.”

“The ultimate measure doomed a man is not situation he stands in moments topple comfort and convenience, but turn he stands at times goods challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is on no occasion voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded do without the oppressed.”

“The time is every time right to do what enquiry right.”

"True peace is not basically the absence of tension; wear down is the presence of justice."

“Our lives begin to end greatness day we become silent pine things that matter.”

“Free at surname, Free at last, Thank Creator almighty we are free old last.”

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

“In probity end, we will remember not quite the words of our enemies, but the silence of communiquй friends.”

"I believe that unarmed untrained and unconditional love will fake the final word in genuineness.

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

“I have decided almost stick with love. Hate not bad too great a burden correspond with bear.”

“Be a bush if boss around can't be a tree. Pretend you can't be a course, just be a trail. Theorize you can't be a ra, be a star. For constrain isn't by size that on your toes win or fail.

Be illustriousness best of whatever you are.”

“Life's most persistent and strong question is, 'What are boss around 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 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14, 2025

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009