Introduction


Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr., has been hailed as a prophet, a modern Moses, and the conscience of a nation. The son of a southern middle-class African American minister and his wife, King became an internationally known leader of the Civil Rights movement. King gained worldwide recognition for his philosophy of nonviolent social change. In 1964 he became the youngest person to have received the Nobel Peace Prize. -- Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography

King was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and was raised in a middle-class family. Following the lead of his father and grandfathers, he pursued a theological education. He studied the works of Walter Rauschenbusch, who contended that the church must work to undo social injustices, and those of Mohandas K. Gandhi, who espoused a philosophy of nonviolence. In the fall of 1951 he began his doctoral studies at Boston University and received his Ph. D. in systematic theology in 1955. That same year he rose to prominence in the civil rights movement by organizing a protest in support of Rosa Parks, a black woman who was arrested in Alabama for sitting in a "whites only" section of a public bus. Near the end of 1962 he began working to desegregate Birmingham, Alabama. His leadership produced an agreement with the Justice Department that led to the desegregation of lunch counters, restrooms, fitting rooms, and drinking fountains. In 1963 King helped plan a massive march on Washington, D.C., where an estimated 250,000 people were on hand to hear him present his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. In 1964 King received the Nobel Peace Prize. His campaign for voting rights, concentrated in Selma, Alabama, was met with violence from both police and civilians and resulted in President Lyndon Johnson signing the 1965 Voting Rights Act into law. King continued his social campaigns until April 4, 1968, when he was assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis, Tennessee. -- Martin Luther King, Jr. Criticism

 

Recommended Resources

  1. King, Martin Luther, Jr. (Contemporary Literary Criticism)
  2. King, Martin Luther, Jr.: West's Encyclopedia of American Law
  3. Martin Luther King, Jr - 1960's Government and Politics
  4. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  5. The Struggle for Civil Rights: The Sixties in America

All Resources

Display as: Categories, List
  1. 1955 | Human Rights, Social Justice: The People's Chronology
  2. 1963 | Human Rights, Social Justice: The People's Chronology
  3. 1965 | Human Rights, Social Justice: The People's Chronology
  4. 1967 | Political Events: The People's Chronology
  5. 1968 | Human Rights, Social Justice: The People's Chronology
  6. African Americans Riot in Watts: Salem on History
  7. Assassinations of King and Kennedy: Salem on History
  8. Black Church Leaders and Civil Rights - 1950's Religion
  9. Civil Rights and Equal Protection: Supreme Court Drama
  10. Civil Rights and the Churches - 1960's Religion
  11. Civil Rights Movement: West's Encyclopedia of American Law
  12. Civil Rights: The Sixties in America Almanac
  13. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Address to the AFL-CIO Convention
  14. FBI and CIA Interference in Civil Rights Movement Is Revealed ...
  15. Heed their Rising Voices: West's Encyclopedia of American Law
  16. King, Martin Luther, Jr. (Contemporary Literary Criticism)
  17. King, Martin Luther, Jr. 1929-1968 - 1950's Religion
  18. King, Martin Luther, Jr. 1929-1968 - 1960's Religion
  19. King, Martin Luther, Jr.: The Oxford Companion to American ...
  20. King, Martin Luther, Jr.: West's Encyclopedia of American Law
  21. Martin Luther King, Jr - 1960's Government and Politics
  22. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography
  23. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography
  24. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography
  25. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography
  26. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  27. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  28. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  29. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  30. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  31. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography / Profile
  32. Martin Luther King, Jr., Delivers His "I Have a Dream Speech"
  33. Martin Luther King, Jr., Is Assassinated in Memphis: Salem on ...
  34. Martin Luther King, Jr., Leads a March from Selma to Montgomery ...
  35. Martin Luther King, Jr., Wins the Nobel Peace Prize: Salem on ...
  36. Martin Luther King, Jr.: The Sixties in America Primary Sources
  37. Martin Luther King, Jr: Vietnam War Primary Sources
  38. My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr. Summary - Coretta Scott King
  39. Overview - 1960's Government and Politics
  40. Overview - 1960's Lifestyles and Social Trends
  41. Overview - 1960's Lifestyles and Social Trends
  42. Overview - 1960's Lifestyles and Social Trends
  43. Pacifism: West's Encyclopedia of American Law
  44. People in the News - 1960's Law and Justice
  45. President Kennedy Biography | Domestic Issues
  46. Radical Politics: Black Power - 1960's Government and Politics
  47. Segregation and Desegregation: Great American Court Cases
  48. Southern Christian Leadership Conference Is Founded: Salem on ...
  49. Testament of Hope Review - Martin Luther King
  50. The Enduring Legacy of the 1960s: The Sixties in America Almanac
  51. The Freedom Rides - 1960's Lifestyles and Social Trends
  52. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume I Review
  53. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume I Review
  54. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume II Review
  55. The Papers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Volume III Review
  56. The Sit-in Movement - 1960's Lifestyles and Social Trends
  57. The Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr.
  58. The Struggle for Civil Rights: The Sixties in America
  59. Time Line of Twentieth Century Human Rights: Salem on History
  60. Voting Rights Act of 1965: West's Encyclopedia of American Law
  61. Walker v. Birmingham: Great American Court Cases
  62. Why We Can't Wait - Martin Luther King Jr.