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Michael Luther was born January 15, 1929 in Atlanta,
Georgia. At the age of six, Michael's father changed their names to
Martin Luther King Sr. and Jr. Martin's father was the pastor of
Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, which was founded by
his maternal grandfather. Martin was ordained as a minister at the age
of 18.
Martin entered Morehouse College
at the age of 15 and graduated in 1947. He then attended Crozer
Theological Seminary where he obtained a bachelor of divinity
degree in 1951 and his PHD in Philosophy from Boston University
in 1955.
Rosa Parks was arrested on December 1,
1955 for refusing to give up her seat on a bus, which led to the
Montgomery Bus Boycott. King, at that time the pastor of the Dexter
Avenue Baptist Church, became actively involved in the fight
against segregated bussing as the president of the Montgomery
Improvement Association. The boycott against public transportation in
Montgomery marked the beginning of the Civil Rights movement.
The Southern Christian Leadership
Conference was founded in 1957 to help coordinate Civil Rights
activities throughout the south. Martin played a leading role in
organizing this group in which Black churches and their ministers
joined together to fight segregation.
In 1959 Martin Luther King joined his
father in Atlanta to become a co-pastor of Ebenezer Baptist
Church.
Martin continued to be active in the
Civil Rights movement and in 1963 helped organize The March on
Washington where he delivered one of his most famous speeches,
I Have a Dream. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in
1964 and in 1965 he helped organize and participated in the Voting
Rights Marches from Selma to Montgomery. The first march ended
in brutal beatings by the Selma police under Commissioner of
Public Safety - Bull Conner. Two weeks later, a
second march was successful in reaching Montgomery where King spoke to
a crowd of more than 20,000 in front of the State Capitol.
Martin Luther King's home was bombed,
his life was threatened, he was stoned, beaten, and arrested for his
stand on Equal Rights. In spite of all that was done to him, he always
stood for peaceful and passive resistance in the true spirit of
Mohandas Gandhi.
On April 4, 1968 Martin Luther King was
assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis Tennessee. The entire world
mourned the passing of a great spiritual leader.
For further Information concerning
Martin Luther King Jr., please visit the following Websites:
The
King Center
I
Have a Dream
Voice
Recordings of MLK Speeches
Sources:
Encyclopedia
Britannica
Encyclopedia
Africana
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