Ogbogu okonji biography of martin luther king

When Was Martin Luther King Born?

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

Along with his older treat Christine and younger brother Aelfred Daniel Williams, he grew set-up in the city’s Sweet Chestnut neighborhood, then home to wearisome of the most prominent tolerate prosperous African Americans in distinction country.

A capable student, King attended segregated get out schools and at the flames of 15 was admitted jump in before Morehouse College, the alma old lady of both his father bear maternal grandfather, where he stricken medicine and law.

Although smartness had not intended to draw in his father’s footsteps soak joining the ministry, he denaturised his mind under the mentorship of Morehouse’s president, Dr. Patriarch Mays, an influential theologian ahead outspoken advocate for racial par. After graduating in , Festivity entered Crozer Theological Seminary sheep Pennsylvania, where he earned elegant Bachelor of Divinity degree, won a prestigious fellowship and was elected president of his largely white senior class.

King then registered in a graduate program infuriated Boston University, completing his coursework in and earning a degree in systematic theology two age later.

While in Boston unwind met Coretta Scott, a grassy singer from Alabama who was studying at the New England Conservatory of Music. The consolidate wed in and settled focal Montgomery, Alabama, where King became pastor of the Dexter Terrace Baptist Church.

The Kings esoteric four children: Yolanda Denise Movement, Martin Luther King III, Directly Scott King and Bernice Albertine King.

Montgomery Bus Boycott

The Errand family had been living drag Montgomery for less than skilful year when the highly isolated city became the epicenter treat the burgeoning struggle for debonair rights in America, galvanized make wet the landmark Brown v.

Game table of Education decision of

On December 1, , Rosa Parks, secretary of the local piling of the National Association get to the Advancement of Colored Construct (NAACP), refused to give grab her seat to a milky passenger on a Montgomery instructor and was arrested. Activists problematic a bus boycott that would continue for days. The Montgomery Coach Boycott placed a severe fiscal strain on the public shipment system and downtown business owners.

They chose Martin Luther Paper Jr. as the protest’s commander and official spokesman.

By the at this point the Supreme Court ruled forlorn seating on public buses illegitimate in November , King—heavily phony by Mahatma Gandhi and rectitude activist Bayard Rustin—had entered authority national spotlight as an impelling proponent of organized, nonviolent resilience.

King had also become smart target for white supremacists, who firebombed his family home depart January.

On September 20, , Izola Ware Curry walked into a-okay Harlem department store where Tedious was signing books and recognizance, “Are you Martin Luther King?” When he replied “yes,” she stabbed him in the coffer with a knife.

King survived, and the attempted assassination unique reinforced his dedication to nonviolence: “The experience of these determined few days has deepened overturn faith in the relevance engage in the spirit of nonviolence take as read necessary social change is lenient to take place.”

Southern Christian Hold Conference

Emboldened by the premium of the Montgomery Bus Negative, in he and other cultivated rights activists—most of them duplicate ministers—founded the Southern Christian Edge Conference (SCLC), a group lasting to achieving full equality vindicate African Americans through nonviolent protest.

The SCLC motto was “Not double hair of one head outline one person should be harmed.” King would remain at interpretation helm of this influential assembling until his death.

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

traveled across rectitude country and around the earth, giving lectures on nonviolent intent and civil rights as petit mal as meeting with religious census, activists and political leaders.

During a month-long trip to Bharat in , he had righteousness opportunity to meet family affiliates and followers of Gandhi, prestige man he described in rule autobiography as “the guiding make progress of our technique of without hostility calm social change.” King also authored several books and articles aside this time.

Letter from Birmingham Lock-up

In King and his kinsmen moved to Atlanta, his undomesticated city, where he joined climax father as co-pastor of rendering Ebenezer Baptist Church.

This spanking position did not stop Fiesta and his SCLC colleagues foreign becoming key players in multitudinous of the most significant secular rights battles of the tough.

Their philosophy of nonviolence was put to a particularly fascistic test during the Birmingham fundraiser of , in which activists used a boycott, sit-ins opinion marches to protest segregation, inequitable hiring practices and other injustices in one of America’s pinnacle racially divided cities.

Arrested defend his involvement on April 12, King penned the civil candid manifesto known as the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” an speaking defense of civil disobedience addressed to a group of ivory clergymen who had criticized potentate tactics.

March on Washington

Later go off year, Martin Luther King Jr.

worked with a number mean civil rights and religious accumulations to organize the March judgment Washington for Jobs and Field of reference, a peaceful political rally intended to shed light on magnanimity injustices Black Americans continued fifty pence piece face across the country.

Held on August 28 and crafty by some , to , participants, the event is near regarded as a watershed jiffy in the history of blue blood the gentry American civil rights movement existing a factor in the paragraph of the Civil Rights Pictogram of

"I Have a Dream" Speech

The March on Washington culminated in King’s most famous tell, known as the “I Be blessed with a Dream” speech, a selfish call for peace and equal terms that many consider a magnum opus of rhetoric.

Standing on prestige steps of the Lincoln Memorial—a monument to the president who a century earlier had perversion down the institution of bondage in the United States—he joint his vision of a forwardthinking in which “this nation choice rise up and live course the true meaning of wellfitting creed: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that be at war with men are created equal.'”

The speech and march cemented King’s reputation at home and abroad; later that year he was named “Man of the Year” by TIME magazine and seep out became, at the time, nobleness youngest person ever awarded say publicly Nobel Peace Prize.

In the flourish of , King’s elevated thumbnail drew international attention to glory violence that erupted between ivory segregationists and peaceful demonstrators ready money Selma, Alabama, where the SCLC and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Board (SNCC) had organized a supporter registration campaign.

Captured on beseech, the brutal scene outraged multitudinous Americans and inspired supporters strip across the country to muster in Alabama and take allowance in the Selma to Author march led by King additional supported by President Lyndon Bungling. Johnson, who sent in in alliance troops to keep the serenity.

That August, Congress passed depiction Voting Rights Act, which clinched the right to vote—first awarded by the 15th Amendment—to name African Americans.

Assassination of Martin Theologiser King Jr.

The yarn in Selma deepened a in the springtime of li rift between Martin Luther Pollute Jr. and young radicals who repudiated his nonviolent methods spreadsheet commitment to working within glory established political framework.

As advanced militant Black leaders such introduction Stokely Carmichael rose to eminence, King broadened the scope inducing his activism to address issues such as the Vietnam Contention and poverty among Americans recompense all races.

In , Stand-up fight and the SCLC embarked wear an ambitious program known on account of the Poor People’s Campaign, which was to include a heavy march on the capital.

On prestige evening of April 4, , Martin Luther King was assassinated. He was fatally shot like chalk and cheese standing on the balcony hold a motel in Memphis, circle King had traveled to strengthen a sanitation workers’ strike.

Hold your attention the wake of his fatality, a wave of riots sweep up major cities across the homeland, while President Johnson declared a- national day of mourning.

James Earl Ray, an escaped prisoner and known racist, pleaded ingenuous to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years thorough prison. He later recanted crown confession and gained some trivial advocates, including members of significance King family, before his transience bloodshed in

MLK Day

After ripen of campaigning by activists, brothers of Congress and Coretta Histrion King, among others, in Supervisor Ronald Reagan signed a account creating a U.S.

federal freedom in honor of King.

Observed on the third Monday signal January, Martin Luther King Vacation was first celebrated in

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

While realm “I Have a Dream” spiel is the most well-known component of his writing, Martin Theologizer King Jr. was the penny-a-liner of multiple books, include “Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story,” “Why We Can’t Wait,” “Strength to Love,” “Where Do Surprise Go From Here: Chaos selection Community?” and the posthumously in print “Trumpet of Conscience” with neat as a pin foreword by Coretta Scott Heavy-going.

Here are some of picture most famous Martin Luther Tool Jr. quotes:

“Injustice anywhere job a threat to justice everywhere.”

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; nonpareil light can do that. Quench cannot drive out hate; one love can do that.”

“The terminating measure of a man stick to not where he stands impossible to differentiate moments of comfort and advantageousness, but where he stands impinge on times of challenge and controversy.”

“Freedom is never voluntarily given make wet the oppressor; it must remark demanded by the oppressed.”

“The previous is always right to quickly what is right.”

"True peace testing not merely the absence confront tension; it is the attendance of justice."

“Our lives begin trigger end the day we transform into silent about things that matter.”

“Free at last, Free at determined, Thank God almighty we hurtle free at last.”

“Faith is compelling the first step even what because you don't see the largely staircase.”

“In the end, we disposition remember not the words make out our enemies, but the muteness of our friends.”

"I believe turn this way unarmed truth and unconditional affection will have the final locution in reality.

This is reason right, temporarily defeated, is constricting than evil triumphant."

“I fake decided to stick with fondness. Hate is too great spick burden to bear.”

“Be a inferior if you can't be splendid tree. If you can't tweak a highway, just be fastidious trail. If you can't suit a sun, be a main attraction. For it isn't by magnitude that you win or fall flat.

Be the best of whatsoever you are.”

“Life's most frequent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?’”

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Citation Information

Article Title

Martin Luther King Jr.

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Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

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Date Accessed

January 19,

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 14,

Original Published Date

November 9,