Martin Luther King, Jr. was
born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia. His father was the minister
of the Ebenezer Baptist Church, as was his father before him
 "M.L.,"
as he was called, lived with his parents, his sister and brother in
Atlanta Ga. Their home was not far from the church his father preached
at
M.L.'s
mother and father taught their children what would become an important
part of M.L.'s life - to treat all people with respect. Martin's father
worked hard to break down the barriers between the races. His father
believed African-Americans should register their complaints by voting
As
M.L. grew up he found that not everyone followed his parents principles.
He noticed that "black" people and white people where treated
differently. He saw that he and his white friends could not drink from
the same water fountains and could not use the same restrooms
M.L.'s
best friend as a child was a white boy and as children they played
happily together. But when they reached school age the friends found
that even though they lived in the same neighborhood, they could not go
to the same school. M.L.'s friend would go to a school for white
children only and M.L. was sent to a school for "black"
children. After the first day of school M.L. and his friend were never
allowed to play together again
When
M.L. was ready for college he decided to follow his father and become a
minister. While attending the Crozer Theological seminary in
Pennsylvania he became familiar with Mahatma Gandhi, who had struggled
to free the people of India from British rule by "peaceful
revolution"
M.L.
was also inspired by the work of Henry David Thoreau, particularly his
essay called "Civil Disobedience." It stated that if enough
people would follow their conscience and disobey unjust laws, they could
bring about a peaceful revolution
It
was also at college that M.L. met a young woman named Coretta Scott and
they would eventually marry. In 1954 M.L. received his PhD. and accepted
the job of pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery,
Alabama
Martin
Luther King, Jr. would now be addressed as "Dr. King"
Dr.
King's involvement with the civil rights movement began with the arrest
of Mrs. Rosa Parks on December 1st , 1955. Mrs. Parks, a
African-American seamstress on her way home from work, was arrested for
not giving a white bus rider her seat. Mrs. Parks was not the first
African-American to be arrested for this "crime", but she was
well known in the Montgomery African-American community
Dr.
King and the other African-American community leaders felt a protest was
needed. The African-American residents of the city were asked to boycott
the bus company by walking and driving instead. The United States
Supreme Court would end the boycott, which lasted 381 days, by declaring
that Alabama's state and local laws requiring segregation on buses were
illegal. The boycott was a success and Dr. King had showed that peaceful
mass action could bring about change
In
January 1957 the Souther Christian Leadership Conference (SCLSC) was
formed with Dr. King as their president. The following May 17, Dr. King
would lead a mass march of 37,000 people to the front of the Lincoln
Memorial in Washington, DC
Dr.
King had become the undisputed leader of the civil rights movement
Partly
in response to the march, on September 9, 1957, the US Congress created
the Civil Rights Commission and the Civil Rights Division of the
Department of Justice, an official body with the authority to
investigate voting irregularities
Dr.
King and the SCLC organized drives for African-American voter
registration, desegregation, and better education and housing throughout
the South. Dr. King continued to speak. He went to many cities and
towns. He was greeted by crowds of people who wanted to hear him speak.
He said all people have the right to equal treatment under the law. Many
people believed in these civil rights and worked hard for them
Dr.
King was asked constantly to speak. So in order to spend more time with
his family he wrote his first book, Stride Toward Freedom which
was a success. While signing copies of his book in Harlem, NY an
African-American woman stepped forward and plunged a letter opener into
Dr. King's chest. Dr. King recovered from his wound and the woman was
eventually declared insane
In
February 1959 Dr. and Mrs. King went to India, the homeland of Mahatma
Ghandi,. In India Dr. King studied Satyagraha,
Gandhi's principle of nonviolent persuasion. Dr. King was determined to
use Satyagraha as his main instrument of social protest
After
his return to America, Dr. King returned home to Atlanta, Ga. where he
shared the ministerial duties of the Ebenezer Baptist Church with his
father. The move also brought Dr. King closer to the center of the
growing civil rights movement
In
January 1963 Dr. King announced he and the Freedom Fighters would go to
Birmingham to fight the segregation laws. An injunction was issued
forbidding any demonstrations and Dr. King and the others were arrested
Upon
his release there were more peaceful demonstrations. The police
retaliated with water hoses, tear gas and dogs. All this happened in the
presence of television news cameras. It would be the first time the
world would see the brutality that the southern African-Americans
endured. The news coverage would help bring about changes as many
Americans were disgusted and ashamed by the cruelty and hatred
Continuing
the fight for civil rights and to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the
Emancipation Proclamation, on August 28, 1963 200,000 people gathered in
the front to the Lincoln Memorial. It was a peaceful protest, made up of
African-Americans and whites, young and old. Most had come to hear Dr.
King deliver his famous "I have a dream"
speech
1964
would be a good year for Dr. King and the civil rights movement. Dr.
King was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize as someone who "had
contributed the most to the furtherance of peace among men." Dr.
King would divide the prize money, $54,000, among various civil rights
organizations
President
Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law. It guaranteed that "No
person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or
national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the
benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination"
In
the winter of 1965 Dr. King lead a march from Selma, Alabama to the
state capital in Montgomery to demand voting reforms. 600 marchers would
begin the march but after 6 blocks the marchers were met by a wall of
state troupers. When the troopers with clubs, whips and tear gas
advanced on the marchers it was described "as a battle zone."
The marchers were driven back while on the sidewalks whites cheered. 2
ministers, 1 white and 1 African-American, were killed and over 70 were
injured with 17 hospitalized. It was the most violent confrontation Dr.
King had experienced
A
court order overturning the injunction against the march was issued and
the marchers were allowed to proceed. When they arrived in Montgomery
the marchers were greeted by 25,00 supporters singing 'We Shall
Overcome." On August 6, 1965 a voting rights bill was passed
allowing African-Americans to vote
Dr.
King believed that poverty caused much of the unrest in America. Not
only poverty for African-Americans, but poor whites, Hispanics and
Asians. Dr. King believed that the United States involvement in Vietnam
was also a factor and that the war poisoned the atmosphere of the whole
country and made the solution of local problems of human relations
unrealistic
This
caused friction between King and the African-American leaders who felt
that their problems deserved priority and that the African-American
leadership should concentrate on fighting racial injustice at home. But
by early 1967 Dr. King had become associated with the antiwar movement
Dr.
King continued his campaign for world peace. He traveled across America
to support and speak out about civil rights and the rights of the
underprivileged
In
April 1968 Dr. King went to Memphis, Tennessee to help the sanitation
workers who were on strike. On April 3rd Dr. King would give what would
be his last speech:
"We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter
with me now. Because I have been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind.
Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its
place. But I'm not concerned about that now.
I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the
mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land.
I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that
we, as a people will get to the promised land. And I'm not fearing any
man.
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord"
The
following day, April 4 1968, as he was leaving his motel room Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. was shot and killed.
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