Martin Luther KingPPT
Martin Luther King Jr. was an American pastor and civil rights activist who w...
Martin Luther King Jr. was an American pastor and civil rights activist who was assassinated in 1968. He is remembered as one of the most important figures in the civil rights movement and is celebrated on Martin Luther King Jr. Day every year.Early life and educationKing was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was the son of Martin Luther King Sr., a Baptist pastor and civil rights activist, and Alberta King, a homemaker. King had two siblings, a younger sister named Willie Christine and a younger brother named Martin Luther King III.King received his early education in the Atlanta public school system. He later attended Booker T. Washington High School, where he excelled academically and became interested in social causes. After graduating from high school in 1948, King attended Morehouse College in Atlanta, a prestigious institution for black men.While at Morehouse College, King became increasingly interested in the civil rights movement. He was exposed to the ideas of social reformers such as W.E.B. Du Bois and was influenced by the nonviolent resistance techniques of Mahatma Gandhi. King also met and befriended other young activists who would become key figures in the civil rights movement, including Ralph David Abernathy and Bayard Rustin.Career as a pastorAfter graduating from Morehouse College in 1951, King became a pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. He was ordained as a Baptist minister at the age of 23. During his time at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, King became known for his powerful sermons and public speaking skills. He also continued to be active in the civil rights movement, and was instrumental in organizing bus boycotts and other forms of protest to desegregate public transportation in Montgomery.In 1955, King was instrumental in the desegregation of public facilities in Montgomery. This effort climaxed with the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which lasted for over a year. King was arrested and his home was bombed during the boycott, but he refused to back down and was released from jail after receiving national attention and support for his cause.Role in the civil rights movementKing's role in the civil rights movement reached a national level in 1957 when he and other civil rights leaders organized the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) to continue the fight for desegregation after the bus boycott ended. King was elected the MIA's first president and began to receive national attention for his work.In 1958, King and other civil rights leaders founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to continue the struggle for desegregation and voting rights in the southern United States. SCLC chapters were established across the country, and King used nonviolent resistance methods such as sit-ins and Freedom Rides to protest discrimination and inequality.In 1963, King and other civil rights leaders organized the Birmingham Campaign to desegregate Birmingham, Alabama's public facilities and buses. The campaign included peaceful demonstrations and sit-ins, but also ended with violence and arrests when police dogs were sicced on demonstrators and their homes were firebombed. However, King's message of nonviolent resistance spread across the country, and President John F. Kennedy was forced to address the issue of discrimination in public facilities for the first time. Kennedy proposed a Civil Rights Bill that was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. The bill outlawed racial discrimination in public facilities and federally funded programs.
