Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential and important figures in American history. He fought for civil rights for all people, regardless of race or color. He was a brilliant speaker and a talented leader. He was also a husband and a father. Here is a look at the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
Table of Contents:
1. Early Life
2. Education
3. The Montgomery Bus Boycott
4. The Civil Rights Act of 1964
5. The Voting Rights Act of 1965
6. The Poor People’s Campaign
7. The Nobel Peace Prize
8. Assassination
9. Legacy
10. Top Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes
Early Life:
Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was the middle child of three children. His father, Martin Luther King Sr., was a Baptist minister. His mother, Alberta Williams King, was a schoolteacher. King’s grandfather, also named Martin Luther King, was a slave owner before the American Civil War.
King grew up in a comfortable middle-class home. He attended segregated public schools. He was an outstanding student and was popular with his classmates. In May 1944, King skipped two grades and entered Morehouse College at the age of 15.
Education:
King was an excellent student in college. He majored in sociology and minored in philosophy. He also became interested in the ministry and decided to become a Baptist minister like his father and grandfather. He graduated from Morehouse College in 1948.
In September 1948, King began studying at Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania. He was one of only a few African-American students at the predominantly white school. He graduated from Crozer in 1951.
The Montgomery Bus Boycott:
In December 1955, Rosa Parks, an African-American woman, was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus to a white passenger. Parks’ arrest sparked a city-wide boycott of the Montgomery bus system.
King became the leader of the boycott. He was arrested and jailed for his participation. The boycott continued for 381 days, until the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Montgomery bus segregation laws were unconstitutional.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964:
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark piece of legislation that outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The act also ended segregation in public places and made it illegal to deny voting rights to African-Americans.
King played a major role in the passage of the act. He testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of the bill. He also helped to organize a massive civil rights march on Washington, D.C. in August 1963.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965:
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was another landmark piece of legislation that outlawed discrimination in voting. The act also ended the practice of literacy tests as a requirement for voting.
King was once again instrumental in the passage of the act. He helped to organize a voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in March 1965. The march was met with violence by state troopers, but it ultimately led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act.
The Poor People’s Campaign:
In 1968, King began to focus on the issue of poverty. He believed that the best way to end poverty was through a guaranteed annual income for all Americans. He also believed that the government should provide jobs for all who wanted them.
King began to organize a Poor People’s Campaign to address these issues. The campaign was to culminate in a massive march on Washington, D.C. in the spring of 1968.
Assassination:
On April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee. He was shot while standing on the balcony of his hotel room. James Earl Ray was arrested and charged with the crime. He pled guilty and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.
King’s assassination sparked riots in more than 100 American cities. President Lyndon Johnson declared a national day of mourning. King was buried in Atlanta, Georgia.
Legacy:
Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered as one of the most important and influential figures in American history. He was a brilliant speaker and a talented leader. He fought for civil rights for all people, regardless of race or color. He also helped to end segregation and to make it illegal to deny voting rights to African-Americans.
The Nobel Peace Prize:
King was posthumously awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. In 1986, King’s birthday was designated as a national holiday. His life and legacy continue to inspire people around the world.
Top Martin Luther King Jr Quotes
“He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love.”–Martin Luther King Jr
“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“I want to be the white man’s brother, not his brother-in-law.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
“You can kill the dreamer, but you can’t kill the dream.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“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.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.
“It is not enough to say ‘We must not wage war.’ It is necessary to love peace and sacrifice for it. We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war, but on the positive affirmation of peace.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
“I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.” — Martin Luther King, Jr.
“We must discover the power of love, the redemptive power of love. And when we discover that, we will be able to make of this old world a new world.”–Martin Luther King Jr.
“Wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“The question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be… The nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Truth, crushed to earth, will rise again.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“I am not interested in power for power’s sake, but I’m interested in power that is moral, that is right and that is good.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“A man can’t ride your back unless it’s bent.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
”The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“We cannot walk alone. And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“A social movement that only moves people is merely a revolt. A movement that changes both people and institutions is a revolution.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“The time is always right to do what is right.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Never succumb to the temptation of bitterness.”– Martin Luther King Jr
”The basic tension that exists in man’s soul … can be epitomized in the statements: ‘You are mine, I am yours.’ This expresses our deepest sense of belonging. The more we are aware of this feeling, the more conscious and significant will become our lives.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Three ways to be influential: through your example, through your deeds, and through your words.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Cowardice asks the question, is it safe? Expediency asks the question, is it politic? Vanity asks the question, is it popular? But conscience asks the question, is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but one must take it because it is right.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Nighttime tests the robustness of all our dreams.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“I have a dream that my four little children will 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.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it’s right.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“The old law of an eye for an eye leaves everybody blind.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into friend.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“No lie can live forever.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
“Hate is too great a burden to bear.” –Martin Luther King, Jr.
“The time is always right to do what is right.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me, but it can stop him from lynching me, and I think that’s pretty important.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“A nation or civilization that continues to produce soft-minded men purchases its own spiritual death on an installment plan.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Those who are not looking for happiness are the most likely to find it, because those who are searching forget that the surest way to be happy is to seek happiness for others.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is: ‘What are you doing for others?’”– Martin Luther Martin Luther King Jr. King Jr.
“Keep feeling the need for being first. But I want you to be the first in love. I want you to be the first in moral excellence. I want you to be the first in generosity.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“I have a dream that my four little children will 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.”– Martin Luther King Jr
“If we are to go forward, we must go back and rediscover those precious values – that all reality hinges on moral foundations and that all reality has spiritual control.”– Martin Luther King Jr.
“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” –Martin Luther King Jr.
Sources Wikipedia Nobel Prize Britannica History The King Center Brainy Quote Biography Parade National Geographic