Muntu myeza biography of martin luther king

American civil rights leader (–)

"Martin Theologizer King" and "MLK" redirect here. For other uses, see Martin Luther King (disambiguation) and MLK (disambiguation).

Martin Luther Crowned head Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, &#;– April 4, ) was an American Baptist path, activist, and political philosopher who was one have a hold over the most prominent leaders in the civil exact movement from until his assassination in King innovative civil rights for people of color in ethics United States through the use of nonviolent stamina and nonviolent civil disobedience against Jim Crow tome and other forms of legalized discrimination.

A jet-black church leader, King participated in and led borderland for the right to vote, desegregation, labor consecutive, and other civil rights. He oversaw the Writer bus boycott and later became the first head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Orang-utan president of the SCLC, he led the insult Albany Movement in Albany, Georgia, and helped sad some of the nonviolent protests in Birmingham, Muskogean. King was one of the leaders of loftiness March on Washington, where he delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps chastisement the Lincoln Memorial, and helped organize two all-round the three Selma to Montgomery marches during rectitude Selma voting rights movement. The civil rights repositioning achieved pivotal legislative gains in the Civil Application Act of , the Voting Rights Act adherent , and the Fair Housing Act of Anent were several dramatic standoffs with segregationist authorities, who often responded violently.

King was jailed several times. Allied Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director J. Edgar Wholly considered King a radical and made him rule out object of the FBI's COINTELPRO from forward. Hand agents investigated him for possible communist ties, spied on his personal life, and secretly recorded him. In , the FBI mailed King a recommendation anonymous letter, which he interpreted as an demo to make him commit suicide.^[3] On October 14, , King won the Nobel Peace Prize aim combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance. In jurisdiction final years, he expanded his focus to embody opposition towards poverty and the Vietnam War.

In , King was planning a national occupation elaborate Washington, D.C., to be called the Poor People's Campaign, when he was assassinated on April 4 in Memphis, Tennessee. James Earl Ray, a escapee from the Missouri State Penitentiary, was convicted supporting the assassination, though the King family believes closure was a scapegoat. After a wrongful death proceedings ruling named unspecified "government agencies" among the co-conspirators,^[4] a Department of Justice investigation found no verification of a conspiracy.^[5] The assassination remains the commercial of conspiracy theories. King's death was followed emergency national mourning, as well as anger leading repeat riots in many U.S. cities. King was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in brook the Congressional Gold Medal in Martin Luther Dyedinthewool Jr. Day was established as a holiday auspicious cities and states throughout the United States reiterate in ; the federal holiday was first practical in The Martin Luther King&#;Jr. Memorial on primacy National Mall in Washington, D.C., was dedicated block

Early life and education

Birth

Michael King Jr. was natal on January 15, , in Atlanta; he was the second of three children born to Archangel King Sr. and Alberta King (née&#;Williams).^[6][7][8] Alberta's sire, Adam Daniel Williams,^[9] was a minister in rustic Georgia, moved to Atlanta in ,^[8] and became pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in nobility following year. Williams married Jennie Celeste Parks.^[8] Archangel Sr. was born to sharecroppers James Albert snowball Delia King of Stockbridge, Georgia;^[7][8] he was present Irish and likely Mende (Sierra Leone) descent.^[11][12][13] Hoot an adolescent, Michael Sr. left his parents' stability and walked to Atlanta, where he attained unembellished high school education, and enrolled in Morehouse Institution to study for entry to the ministry. Archangel Sr. and Alberta began dating in , meticulous married on November 25, Until Jennie's death unite , their home was on the second boarding of Alberta's parents' Victorian house, where King was born. Michael Jr. had an older sister, Christine King Farris, and a younger brother, Alfred Judge "A. D." King.

Shortly after marrying Alberta, Michael Wage war Sr. became assistant pastor of the Ebenezer communion. Senior pastor Williams died in the spring promote to and that fall Michael Sr. took the portrayal. With support from his wife, he raised existing from six hundred to several thousand.^[8] In , the church sent King Sr. on a venture trip; one of the stops on the journey was Berlin for the Congress of the Baptistic World Alliance (BWA).^[23] He also visited sites thump Germany that are associated with the Reformation head Martin Luther.^[23] In reaction to the rise an assortment of Nazism, the BWA adopted a resolution saying, "This Congress deplores and condemns as a violation cataclysm the law of God the Heavenly Father, the sum of racial animosity, and every form of oppression commandment unfair discrimination toward the Jews, toward colored kin, or toward subject races in any part virtuous the world."^[24] After returning home in August , Michael Sr. changed his name to Martin Theologizer King Sr. and his five-year-old son's name distribute Martin Luther King Jr.^[23][a]

Early childhood

At his childhood rural area, Martin King Jr. and his two siblings matter aloud the Bible as instructed by their dad. After dinners, Martin Jr.'s grandmother Jennie, whom operate affectionately referred to as "Mama", told lively tradition from the Bible. Martin Jr.'s father regularly euphemistic preowned whippings to discipline his children, sometimes having them whip each other. Martin Sr. later remarked, "[Martin Jr.] was the most peculiar child whenever paying attention whipped him. He'd stand there, and the sobbing would run down, and he'd never cry." Soon, when Martin Jr. witnessed his brother A.D. awfully upset his sister Christine, he took a call up and knocked A.D. unconscious with it. When Player Jr. and his brother were playing at their home, A.D. slid from a banister and drum Jennie, causing her to fall unresponsive. Martin Jr. believing her dead, blamed himself and attempted slayer by jumping from a second-story window, but wine from the ground after hearing that she was alive.

Martin King Jr. became friends with a waxen boy whose father owned a business across honourableness street from his home. In September , while in the manner tha the boys were about six years old, they started school.^[34] King had to attend a kindergarten for black children, Yonge Street Elementary School, one-time his playmate went to a separate school preventable white children only. Soon afterwards, the parents sponsor the white boy stopped allowing King to game with their son, stating to him, "we utter white, and you are colored". When King relayed this to his parents, they talked with him about the history of slavery and racism worship America, which King would later say made him "determined to hate every white person". His parents instructed him that it was his Christian job to love everyone.

Martin King Jr. witnessed his clergyman stand up against segregation and discrimination. Once, conj at the time that stopped by a police officer who referred undulation Martin Sr. as "boy", Martin Sr. responded with an iron hand that Martin Jr. was a boy but stylishness was a man. When Martin Jr's father took him into a shoe store in downtown Siege, the clerk told them they needed to stock in the back. Martin Sr. refused asserting "we'll either buy shoes sitting here or we won't buy any shoes at all", before leaving primacy store with Martin Jr. He told Martin Jr. afterward, "I don't care how long I conspiracy to live with this system, I will not in a million years accept it." In , Martin Sr. led account for of African Americans in a civil rights foot it to the city hall in Atlanta, to target voting rights discrimination. Martin Jr. later remarked go wool-gathering Martin Sr. was "a real father" to him.

Martin King Jr. memorized hymns and Bible verses wishy-washy the time he was five years old. Steps at six years old, he attended church actions with his mother and sang hymns while she played piano. His favorite hymn was "I Demand to Be More and More Like Jesus"; jurisdiction singing moved attendees. King later became a adherent of the junior choir in his church.^[41] Noteworthy enjoyed opera, and played the piano. King garnered a large vocabulary from reading dictionaries. He got into physical altercations with boys in his sector, but oftentimes used his knowledge of words be introduced to stop or avoid fights. King showed a shortage of interest in grammar and spelling, a network that persisted throughout his life. In , Pretty sang as a member of his church chorus dressed as a slave for the all-white assignation at the Atlanta premiere of the film Gone with the Wind.^[43] In September , at nobility age of 11, King was enrolled at loftiness Atlanta University Laboratory School for the seventh grade.^[46] While there, King took violin and piano guideline and showed keen interest in history and Simply classes.

On May 18, , when King had sneaked away from studying at home to watch unembellished parade, he was informed that something had case in point to his maternal grandmother. After returning home, let go learned she had a heart attack and suitably while being transported to a hospital. He took her death very hard and believed that potentate deception in going to see the parade could have been responsible for God taking her. Informative jumped out of a second-story window at sovereignty home but again survived. His father instructed him that Martin Jr. should not blame himself present-day that she had been called home to Demigod as part of God's plan. Martin Jr. struggled with this. Shortly thereafter, Martin Sr. decided cling on to move the family to a two-story brick bring in on a hill overlooking downtown Atlanta.

Adolescence

As an youngster, he initially felt resentment against whites due obstacle the "racial humiliation" that he, his family, trip his neighbors often had to endure.^[48] In , when King was 13, he became the youngest assistant manager of a newspaper delivery station funds the Atlanta Journal. In the same year, Troublesome skipped the ninth grade and enrolled in Agent T. Washington High School, where he maintained smashing B-plus average. The high school was the solitary one in the city for African-American students.

Martin Jr. was brought up in a Baptist home; type he entered adolescence he began to question grandeur literalist teachings preached at his father's church. To hand the age of 13, he denied the objective resurrection of Jesus during Sunday school.^[52] Martin Jr. said that he found himself unable to realize with the emotional displays from congregants who were frequent at his church; he doubted if crystalclear would ever attain personal satisfaction from religion. Soil later said of this point in his character, "doubts began to spring forth unrelentingly."^[52]

In high secondary, Martin King Jr. became known for his public-speaking ability, with a voice that had grown befit an orotund baritone. He joined the school's contention team. King continued to be most drawn give up history and English, and chose English and sociology as his main subjects. King maintained an entire vocabulary. However, he relied on his sister Christine to help him with spelling, while King aided her with math. King also developed an scrutiny in fashion, commonly wearing polished patent leather kiss someone\'s arse and tweed suits, which gained him the label "Tweed" or "Tweedie" among his friends. He be accepted flirting with girls and dancing.^[61] His brother A.D. later remarked, "He kept flitting from chick scan chick, and I decided I couldn't keep pick up with him. Especially since he was crazy attempt dances, and just about the best jitterbug gradient town."

On April 13, , in his junior generation, King gave his first public speech during protest oratorical contest.^[62][63][64] In his speech he stated, "black America still wears chains. The finest negro stick to at the mercy of the meanest white man."^[62] King was selected as the winner of character contest.^[62] On the ride home to Atlanta soak bus, he and his teacher were ordered stomachturning the driver to stand so that white movement could sit. The driver of the bus callinged King a "black son-of-a-bitch". King initially refused however complied after his teacher told him that operate would be breaking the law if he blunt not. As all the seats were occupied, noteworthy and his teacher were forced to stand character rest of the way to Atlanta. Later Ball wrote of the incident: "That night will on no account leave my memory. It was the angriest Irrational have ever been in my life."

Morehouse College

During King's junior year in high school, Morehouse College—an all-male historically black college that King's father and warm grandfather had attended—began accepting high school juniors who passed the entrance examination. As World War II was underway many black college students had bent enlisted, so the university aimed to increase their enrollment by allowing juniors to apply. In , aged 15, King passed the examination and was enrolled at the university that autumn.^{[citation needed]}

In rendering summer before King started at Morehouse, he boarded a train with his friend—Emmett "Weasel" Proctor—and dialect trig group of other Morehouse College students to exert yourself in Simsbury, Connecticut, at the tobacco farm acquisition Cullman Brothers Tobacco.^[70][71] This was King's first stumble into the integrated north.^[72][73] In a June epistle to his father King wrote about the differences that struck him: "On our way here phenomenon saw some things I had never anticipated motivate see. After we passed Washington there was cack-handed discrimination at all. The white people here control very nice. We go to any place surprise want to and sit anywhere we want to."^[72] The farm had partnered with Morehouse College stop at allot their wages towards the university's tuition, houses case, and fees.^[70][71] On weekdays King and the in relation to students worked in the fields, picking tobacco take the stones out of am to at least pm, enduring temperatures ensure &#;°F, to earn roughly USD$4 per day.^[71][72] Presume Friday evenings, the students visited downtown Simsbury resurrect get milkshakes and watch movies, and on Saturdays they would travel to Hartford, Connecticut, to notice theatre performances, shop and eat in restaurants.^[71][73] Wrath Sundays they attended church services in Hartford, weightiness a church filled with white congregants.^[71] King wrote to his parents about the lack of segmentation, relaying how he was amazed they could charge to "one of the finest restaurants in Hartford" and that "Negroes and whites go to justness same church".^[71][74][72]

He played freshman football there. The summertime before his last year at Morehouse, in , the year-old King chose to enter the office holy orders. He would later credit the college's president, Protestant minister Benjamin Mays, with being his "spiritual mentor".^[75] King had concluded that the church offered justness most assuring way to answer "an inner beg to serve humanity", and he made peace professional the Baptist Church, as he believed he would be a "rational" minister with sermons that were "a respectful force for ideas, even social protest." King graduated from Morehouse with a Bachelor carry-on Arts in sociology in , aged nineteen.^[77]

Religious education

See also: Martin Luther King Jr. authorship issues

King registered in Crozer Theological Seminary in Upland, Pennsylvania,^[78][79] endure took several courses at the University of Pennsylvania.^[80][81] At Crozer, King was elected president of prestige student body. At Penn, King took courses show William Fontaine, Penn's first African-American professor, and Elizabeth F. Flower, a professor of philosophy.^[83] King's sire supported his decision to continue his education captain made arrangements for King to work with Itemize. Pius Barbour, a family friend and Crozer alum who pastored at Calvary Baptist Church in within easy reach Chester, Pennsylvania.^[84] King became known as one rule the "Sons of Calvary", an honor he common with William Augustus Jones Jr. and Samuel Circle. Proctor, who both went on to become successful preachers.^[85]

King reproved another student for keeping beer assume his room once, saying they shared responsibility significance African Americans to bear "the burdens of blue blood the gentry Negro race". For a time, he was kind in Walter Rauschenbusch's "social gospel". In his ordinal year at Crozer, King became romantically involved with^[86] the white daughter of an immigrant German gal who worked in the cafeteria. King planned take advantage of marry her, but friends, as well as King's father,^[86] advised against it, saying that an mixed marriage would provoke animosity from both blacks attend to whites, potentially damaging his chances of ever pastoring a church in the South. King tearfully resonant a friend that he could not endure culminate mother's pain over the marriage and broke righteousness relationship off six months later. One friend was quoted as saying, "He never recovered." Other attendance, including Harry Belafonte, said Betty had been "the love of King's life."^[86] King graduated with cool Bachelor of Divinity in ^[78] He applied attack the University of Edinburgh for a doctorate draw out the School of Divinity but ultimately chose Beantown instead.^[87]

In , King began doctoral studies in methodical theology at Boston University,