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Martin luther king jr biographical essay
Martin luther king jr biographical essay
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Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most important voices of the American civil rights movement, which worked for equal rights for all. He was famous for using nonviolent resistance to overcome racism and injustice. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born Michael King in 1929 in Atlanta,Georgia. He was named after his father, who was a Baptist minister. When Michael King, Sr. took over his relative's church, he changed his name to Martin Luther, after a prominent German religious leader. Thereafter, he changed his son’s name to martin as well.. His mother, Alberta Williams King, was an accomplished organist and choir leader. Michael, who was born second of his parents’ three children, had an elder sister called Willie Christine King and a younger …show more content…
brother, Alfred Daniel Williams King. Martin went to school at Booker T. Washington High School. This was a school strictly for African Americans. Here he excelled in studies. He joined a public speaking class and joine the debate team. He was also a good singer and participated in various choirs.. In 1944, Marin Jr. graduated from school, skipping both ninth and twelfth grades and entered Morehouse College at the age of fifteen. King graduated from Morehouse College in 1948 with a degree in Sociology. He further received a Bachelor's of Divinity in 1951 and then a Ph.D. Growing up in the south means that he was directly affected by racism. He found the law that required blacks to give up their seats in favor of white passengers while travelling in public transport system. He was humiliated but had a newfound respect for his father and the work that he had done to end segregation. This is the point where he really got interested in the Civil Rights Movement and the treatment of blacks. King got involved with the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Rosa Parks sparked this movement when she refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. She then proceeded to get arrested King was elected president of this movement in 1955. This was a 13-month period where African Americans refuse to use public transportation to show the injustice they were facing on segregated buses. King's home was bombed due to his involvement in the boycott. Thankfully, his wife, Coretta Scott King, and baby daughter who was home at the time were unharmed. King was then arrested in February on the charges of conspiracy. The boycott lasted 382 days. In the end, on December 21, 1956, the Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation on public transportation was now illegal. In 1957, Dr.
King was elected and became president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), an organization designed to provide new leadership for the civil rights movement. This was a period during which he would emerge as the most important social leader for the civil rights movement. In 1963, he led a numerous amount civil rights groups in a nonviolent campaign aimed at Birmingham, Alabama. At the time was described as the “most segregated city in America”. The Tv at the time was extremly popular. This made it possible for people all over to see the treatment of blacks on the news. There had a wide range of instances where you could witness young blacks getting attacked by police dogs and water hoses.This police brutality led to a national outrage resulting in a push for the civil rights legislation. It was during this campaign that Dr. King drafted the “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” a combination of Dr. King’s thoughts, philosophies,and tactics. Later in 1963, Dr. King was one of the driving forces behind the March for Jobs and Freedom, more commonly known as the “March on Washington”. This drew over a quarter-million people to the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC.. It was at this march that Dr. King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, which made his status as a social change leader and helped inspire the nation to act on civil rights.He and the other leaders then met with President John F. Kennedy. They asked for many things including an end to segregation in public schools, greater protections for African-Americans, and more effective civil rights legislation amongst other things. Dr. King was later named Time magazine’s “Man of the Year”. In 1964, Martin Luther King Jr. became the youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize. The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to the person who has ''done the most or the best work”. It is an extremely honorable prize worth striving for. His acceptance speech in Oslo is thought by many to be among
the most powerful remarks ever delivered at the event, climaxing at one point with the often quoted phrase “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right temporarily defeated is stronger than evil triumphant”. These words go down in history as some of the most influential. Also in 1964, partly due to the March on Washington, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act.This eliminating racial segregation in the United States. The legislation made it illegal to discriminate against blacks or other minorities in hiring, public accommodations, education or transportation. Of course this still did not stop racist views but it made a positive outlook on change in the future. The next year, 1965, Congress went on to pass the Voting Rights Act, which was an equally-important set of laws that eliminated the remaining barriers to voting for African-Americans. This included no poll tax in federal elections and a ban of literacy tests.. This legislation resulted directly from the Selma to Montgomery March for Voting Rights lead by Dr. King. Between 1965 and 1968, King continued with his protest work and fight for Civil Rights. King became a critic of the War in Vietnam. While speaking from a balcony at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was shot and killed. The world was taken by storm. James Earl Ray the man the assassinated the popular civil rights activist. Ray stood in the bathroom of the Lorraine Motel, balanced his rifle on a window and shot King as the civil rights leader was standing on a balcony outside of his motel room. After shooting King, Ray immediately fled. This set off a manhunt that would last more than two months and cover five countries. At the time, it was said to be the FBI's most expensivist and biggest investigation in its history. James Earl Ray was arrested and charged with the assassination. He spent life in prison until he died in 1998 due to liver disease or kidney failure. The cause of death couldn't be pinpointed. Dr. King’s wife, Mrs. Coretta Scott King, officially founded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, which she dedicated to being a memorial aimed at continuing Dr. King’s work on important social problems around the world. .. Every year on January 21st, America celebrates Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebrates the life and legacy of a man who brought hope and healing to America. In conclusion, throughout Martin’s life, he tried to show the importance of solving the nation’s racial problems. He relied on his faith in the goodness of people to take the first step, not knowing the outcome and not seeing the whole staircase. Today, Dr. King is considered to be one of the most important figures of the 20th century, not only for African-Americans but for all those seeking freedom, justice, equality and peace. His unique approach to solve problems with nonviolent action stands as one of the most successful alternatives to the world’s ongoing struggle against violent conflict.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American baptist minister, Civil Rights activist, and humanitarian. He was born on January 25, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia under the name of Michael King, Jr. Both he and his father later adopted the name of the German protestant leader Martin Luther in honor of him. King thrived at Booker T. Washington High School, graduating at the age of 15 before moving on to Morehouse College. For years, he had questioned religion, but in his third year of college, he took a bible class that renewed his faith. King later went on to study at Crozer theological seminary for three years. He met his future wife during his last year of seminary, and went on to receive his Ph.D in 1955 at the age of 25.
Martin Luther King Jr was a activist that was known for his famous speech “I had a dream”, he changed the lives for many people and helped changed the future. The world renowned Baptist minister and social activist had a massive impact on the American civil rights movement from the mid 1950’s until his assassination in 1968. Martin Luther King Jr was born on the 15th of January, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, known as Michael Luther King Jr and was than assassinated on the 4th of April 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee, United States and has still left a footprint on many people
The assassination of Martin Luther King was a vital part of, not only Black history, but American history. In short, King was a civil rights activist. He was the leader of the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 and found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in 1957. As president of the SCLC, King’s main focus was to fight against segregation. He, then, began to form nonviolent protests in Birmingham, Alabama, that attracted negative attention from the police force that, unfortunately lead to brutal attacks on participants. In 1963 during the March on Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech in front of millions and on television. These things make his death a notable and significant historical event. Dr. King dedicated his life and paid the ultimate price in the name of equality, justice, peace, and co-habitation for humankind.
Martin Luther King Jr. had a significant impact on society in terms of civil rights for the less privileged and created a model for peaceful protest. It is important for everyone to know who King is because of his impact on today’s society. If it was not for him society would still be heavily segregated. White patriotic people would still have advantages in their schools and society that “colored” people did not. King is a humongous icon in America’s society today, we even have a special holiday for him celebrated every third monday of January. Even though he helped “colored” people win their civil rights America’s society is still racist to a certain extent. He is still an icon for peaceful protesting.
In 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the speech “I have a Dream,” in attempt to end all racism throughout the United States. Baptist minister and Civil Rights Activist, Martin played a pivotal role in ending the legal segregation of African American Citizens throughout the south and other areas of the nation. Not only was he a part of that, but he also was a part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and he fought for African Americans voting rights in 1965. King craved for a nation that accepted each other for their personality, rather than their skin color. He wanted all men to be equal, as the Bible says to do. He took the first step in achieving his goals and voiced his opinion to everyone who had the ears to listen.
Martin Luther King admired Muhammad Gundi and Gundi’s idea of peaceful protest. King adopted this idea and organized much historical peaceful protest and civil disobedience in the name of equality. King led the Montgomery bus boycott of 1963 to protest the arrest of Rosa Parks, King also led the “march on Washington” when over 200,000 people gathered to hear King’s most famous speech. Kings most famous speech, I Have a Dream, was given on the steps of the Lincoln memorial on august 28th 1963. In King’s speech king conveys his idea of a perfect society of all races living together peacefully. King had much larger impact on civil rights than Malcolm X mostly because of King’s theories and principals of peaceful protest and Civil disobedience as opposed to X’s view of “whatever it takes.” Unfortunately much like Malcolm X King was also
First and for most, King devoted himself to the idea of “non-violent non-cooperation,” peaceful protest and no violence toward law enforcement or any one. The most influential act that one single civil rights activist preformed was the famous march on Washington for jobs. The march took place on August 28, 1963. It claimed the title of the largest civil rights convention/rally in history. It attracted upwards of 200,000 people, and needed nearly 300,000 police to control the passionate crowed. It was here that King gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech upon the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Among other things, the speech promoted peace and love between all races and religions, as well as economic rights for minorities, African Americans in particular. The positivity and the extreme desire for equal treatment is an appeal to logos for most of the population. This initial act serves as the first major advancement of civil rights simply due to the sheer size of participants it attracted, as well as the mass amounts of media attention it received. With these peaceful interactions taking place, Kings ideologies become more and more universally accepted by the general public. It was estimated that nearly 80 percent of the attendees were of African American decent. This is was crucial because this was the first time the Black community had been united since the end of the civil war. This unionization of the Black community continued to snow ball as King took his campaign for peace to the south.
During the 1950s, racism against African-Americans was a prevalent issue in the United States. Although all blacks were supposed to be free, under a corrupt law system, blacks were victimized mercilessly. Therefore, many civil rights activists emerged in order to fight for equal rights for the black community. The most notable activist was Dr Martin Luther King Jr. King engaged in various civil rights boycotts and protests. Out of all of his civil rights efforts, the most prominent was the “I Have a Dream” speech, given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the “March on Washington” in 1963. The speech illustrated the issue of racism and provoke the audience to sympathise with the blacks while providing hope to the depressed African-American community.
Born in 1929 on April 4th Martin Luther King was brought up by a religious family of pastors in Atlanta, Georgia. Originally named Michael he attended a segregated high school and graduated at the age of 15. He later received the B. A. degree in 1948 from Morehouse College, a Negro Institution of Atlanta from which both his father and grandfather had graduated. In 1957 The Southern Christian Leadership Conference was formed and Martin Luther King was to provide new leadership for the civil rights movement...
The Civil Rights Movement in the 1950’s and 1960’s was a mass mobilization and unification of people from varying backgrounds fighting for equal rights and equal opportunity for Black Americans. Black male leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. preached about equality and challenged people to consider social injustices within society. The leadership qualities and influence of Dr. King are undeniable. His rhetoric united Black America and identified their entitlement to the principles embodied in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. Dr. King’s inspiring speech for Black’s to “one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character”, motivated White and Black
Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia on the 15th of January in 1929, to parents Alberta Williams King and Martin Luther King Sr. Martin Luther King Jr’s name at birth was Michael King as well as his fathers but after attending the Fifth Baptist World Alliance Congress in Germany Martin Luther King Sr. decided to change his and his sons name to Martin in the honor of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Martin Luther King Jr. was the grandson of A.D. Williams who became a pastor of small Ebenezer Baptist church with 13 members but under his leadership he was able to make it into a potent congregation. A.D Williams married Jennie Celeste Parks and gave birth to Alberta Williams. Michael King Sr. family were sharecroppers in a poor
According to the "Martin Luther King Jr. Timeline.”, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 15,1929 the second and eldest child of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Sr., a Baptist minister, and Alberta Williams King. His birth name was Michael Luther King, Jr., but Kings father changed both his and his sons first names (Martin) to honor the death of King, Jr., grandfather in 1933. King was a very bright student who progressed rapidly skipping two grades (9th and 11th) at Booker T. Washington High School and attended Morehouse College at the age of fifteen in 1944. Furthermore, many people are un...
The famous speech, “ I Have a Dream”, was held in 1963 by a powerful leader of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s. He was born January 15,1929 the son of an Atlanta Pastor. Martin Luther King Jr. always insisted on nonviolent resistance and always tried to persuade others with his nonviolent beliefs. In 1963, King spoke from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and almost 200,000 people attended his speech. All his listeners were Civil Rights supporters who rallied behind him and the people who watched his appearance on television. King traveled the country making speeches and inspiring people to become involved in the Civil Rights Movement. He organized non violent student sit-ins and fought for the rights of the black population.
Martin Luther King Jr. was the most influential leader of the American Civil Rights Movement as he fought for the freedom of African Americans. King’s most influential speech is his “I Have a Dream” given on August 28, 1963.1 King himself was a man whom thousands of people admired. Martin Luther King Jr. uses an expressive tone in his speeches by using powerful imagery to his audience, reminding them of the challenges facing them and defeating racism. Martin Luther King Jr. inspired others to take action, lead by example, as shown in his speeches and promoted non-violence as a method for change. To begin with, Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15, 1929.2 His father, Martin Luther King Sr., who was a pastor, and his mother Alberta, who was a schoolteacher, raised both King and his two siblings.3 King was very religious because the three generations of men, starting with his great-grandfather, were all preachers.
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial during the “March on Washington” (King). Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a credible speaker. He was a Baptist minister and the leader of the Civil Rights Movement as well as the leader of Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Dr. King was also a Nobel Prize winner and a believer of nonviolence (“Martin Luther King Jr.”). For example, Dr. King addresses in his speech that “we must not allow our creative protests to degenerate into physical violence” (King).