Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15, 1929. Son of MLK Sr. and Alberta King, Martin grew up with two other siblings. King attended a local grammar and high school, then continued his education at Morehouse College. Though he wasn’t planning to be a minister when he was older, scholar Benjamin Mays told him that a religious career is always an option. In 1948, King received his bachelor’s degree and later attended Crozer Theological Seminary where he would then win the Plafker Award (outstanding student) and the J. Lewis Crozer Fellowship award. In 1953, he completed the coursework for his doctorate and a couple of years later was given the degree.
After King married Coretta Scott, both returned to the South and King became a pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. He made his first mark in the civil rights movement by rallying the black community during the 382-day boycott of the city bus lines. Having been arrested, King overcame violence. Some people did not like King or what he did and some people even bombed his home. King was an important national hero. He gathered a group of black leaders and planned a new organization named the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Shortly after being named president of the organization, King began helping other black communities organize their own individual protests against segregation and discrimination. After his trip to India and writing his first book, King returned home and became co-pastor with his father. King was arrested for a second time after a mass protest in Birmingham. Police brutality was a major force against the marchers but even when King was arrested, he was not silenced. He wrote the “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” serving as a guide for Americans to freedom. Later that year, King delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech at the historic March on Washington. Time Magazine named him Person of the Year and King went on to receive the Nobel Peace Prize a couple of months later.
King had a vision and great plans for America. He was organizing another march on Washington called the Poor People’s Campaign, fighting for economic equality. However, he never got to his plans. King was shot in the neck and assassinated on April 4th, 1968. His death shook the world and even caused a wave of violence. His legacy lived on through his wife. Coretta organized the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change which stands next to the Ebenezer Baptist Church. His birthday has also become a national holiday and every January 15th, we celebrate his impactful life and legacy.