Achievements And Accomplishments Of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. In a matter of thirteen years, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made magnificent achievements for the civil rights and equality of his fellow man. One of his first major accomplishments began on December 1st, 1955 after the arrest of Rosa Parks. Dr. King decided to join the movement to end segregation on public transportation. Four days later, he was elected as the President of the Montgomery Improvement Association and was expected to be the official leader of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Due to his leadership and the hard work of their community, on November 13th, 1956, the Supreme Court declared that segregation on public transportation was unconstitutional. His next important achievement occurred on February 14th, 1957.
King `1was 1964. On January 3rd, Dr. King appeared on the cover of Time magazine as the first African American to win the Man of the Year (260). Six months later, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed which officially integrated public schools, made public discrimination illegal, and halted employment discrimination. Dr. King’s fierce leadership and powerful influence led him to the award of the Nobel Peace prize on December 10th (260). At this time, and still to this day, he is the youngest person ever to have this award bestowed upon him (260). The next year, on March 21st, Dr. King and three thousand protestors began the march to Selma, Alabama (260). Five days later they completed their goal and fought for their rights. Their efforts were validated when President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law, which banned literacy tests, allowed the federal government to oversee voting sights, and authorized the investigation of poll taxes (“Voting Rights Act of 1965”). Dr. King’s final victory in his era of revolution was the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (also known as the Fair Housing Act) (Ayers 265). This law, that was pushed to pass by President Johnson just after Dr. King’s assassination, “prohibited discrimination concerning the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin, or sex” (“Fair Housing Act”). Although it became official on April 11th, one week after Dr. King’s death, President made magnificent movements toward equality for all, this struggle came with many trials and challenges. The issue of inequality stuck Dr. King at an extremely young age. “As a child, his best friend was a white boy. He and the boy were allowed to play together but were not permitted to attend the same school”, which was a difficult concept for little Martin Luther to understand (Khadijah). From then on, inequality became a way of life. “Martin encountered more situations of inequality such as those associated with public use facilities, transportation, and voting”