King martin luther jr. biography
Meet the civil rights leader in our Martin Luther King facts and discover how he changed history for millions of African-American people during the Civil Rights Movement…
Martin Luther King facts
Full name: Dr Martin Luther King Jr
Born: 15 January 1929.
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Occupation: Minister and activist.
Died: 4 April 1968.
Best known for: Campaigning for the rights of African Americans during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s.
1) Martin Luther King Jr was born in the United States of America to African American parents. At birth he was named Michael King, but his father later changed his name to Martin Luther King Jr.
2) When Martin Luther King was growing up, life was hard for African Americans. The Southern United States operated under the ‘Jim Crow laws’ that kept black and white people separated in what was called ‘segregation’. Black people had different schools, toilets and even sections of the bus to white people. They were also denied the right to vote in elections.
3) Martin Luther King had his first experience of segregation at just six years old, when he was told he wasn’t allowed to play with his white friend anymore – his friend’s father wouldn’t allow it!
4) His first major role in the Civil Rights Movement came in 1955, after an African American lady – Rosa Parks – was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a bus. This sparked outrage in the African American community and Martin helped to organise a boycott of the city’s buses. After 381 days of protest, a court finally ruled that such segregation laws should no longer be recognised.
5) Martin was a great believer in peaceful protest, inspired by the Indian activist Mahatma Gandhi. His protests used no-violent tactics, even when the protesters themselves were met with violence from the police.
ADVERTISEME In the nearly 40 years that the United States has celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the national holiday has never coincided with the inauguration of a non-incumbent president. That changes this year. Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated annually on the third Monday in January to mark the late activist’s birthday. In 2025, the holiday falls on January 20, the same day typically set aside for Inauguration Day every four years. Indeed, January 20 is also when Donald Trump will be sworn in as 47 president. Bill Clinton and Barack Obama previously took presidential oaths of office on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. However, in both cases, the men were starting their second consecutive terms, much quieter occasions than the transfer of power from one president to the next. Days after King’s assassination in 1968, a campaign for a holiday in his honor began. U.S. Representative John Conyers Jr. of Michigan first proposed a bill on April 8, 1968, but the first vote on the legislation didn’t happen until 1979. King’s widow, Coretta Scott King, led the lobbying effort to drum up public support. Fifteen years after its introduction, the bill finally became law. In 1983, President Ronald Reagan’s signature created Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service as a federal holiday. The only national day of service, Martin Luther King Jr. Day was first celebrated in 1986. The first time all 50 states recognized the holiday was in 2000. Had he lived, King would be turning 96 years old this year. See Martin Luther King Jr.’s life depicted onscreen in the 2018 documentary I Am MLK Jr. or the Oscar-winning movie Selma. Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister and civil rights activist who had a seismic impact on race relations in the United States, beginning in the mid-1950s. Among his many efforts, King headed the Southern Christian Leadership Conferenc In 1955, he was recruited to serve as spokesman for the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was a campaign by the African-American population of Montgomery, Alabama to force integration of the city’s bus lines. After 381 days of nearly universal participation by citizens of the black community, many of whom had to walk miles to work each day as a result, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that racial segregation in transportation was unconstitutional. In 1957, Dr. King was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), an organization designed to provide new leadership for the now burgeoning civil rights movement. He would serve as head of the SCLC until his assassination in 1968, a period during which he would emerge as the most important social leader of the modern American civil rights movement. In 1963, he led a coalition of numerous civil rights groups in a nonviolent campaign aimed at Birmingham, Alabama, which at the time was described as the “most segregated city in America.” The subsequent brutality of the city’s police, illustrated most vividly by television images of young blacks being assaulted by dogs and water hoses, led to a national outrage resulting in a push for unprecedented civil rights legislation. It was during this campaign that Dr. King drafted the “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” the manifesto of Dr. King’s philosophy and tactics, which is today required-reading in universities worldwide. Later in 1963, Dr. King was one of the driving forces behind the March for Jobs and Freedom, more commonly known as the “March on Washington,” which drew over a quarter-million people to the national mall. It was at this march that Dr. King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, which cemented his status as a social change leader and helped inspire the nation to act on civil rights. Dr. King was later named Time magazine’s “Man of the Year.” In 1964, at 35 years old, Martin Luther Kin The Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. King in 1964 Michael King Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (born Michael King, Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an Americanpastor, activist, humanitarian, and leader in the Civil Rights Movement. He was best known for improving civil rights by using nonviolentcivil disobedience, based on his Christian beliefs. Because he was both a Ph.D. and a pastor, King was sometimes called the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. (abbreviation: the Rev. Dr. King), or just Dr King. He is also known by his initials MLK. He was the pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia. Martin Luther King Jr. worked hard to make people understand that not only black people but that all races should always be treated equally to white people. He gave speeches to encourage African Americans to protest without using violence. Led by Dr. King and others, many African Americans used nonviolent, peaceful strategies to fight for their civil rights. These strategies included sit-ins, boycotts, and protest marches. Often, they were attacked by white police officers or people who did not want African Americans to have more rights. However, no matter how badly they were attacked, Dr. King and his followers never fought back. King also helped to organize the 1963 March on Washington, where he delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech. The next year, he won
Martin Luther King Jr.
1929-1968
In Focus: Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Who Was Martin Luther King Jr?
About Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr.
In office
January 10, 1957 – April 4, 1968Preceded by Position established Succeeded by Ralph Abernathy Born
(1929-01-15)January 15, 1929
Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.Died April 4, 1968(1968-04-04) (aged 39)
Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.Cause of death Gunshot wound Resting place Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park Spouse(s) Children Parents Relatives Education Occupation Monuments Full list Movement Awards Signature