Martin Luther King Jr

By 12T

Early life
Martin Luther King Jr was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was a Christian. He was a clever student and went to college at age fifteen not formally graduating high school. King became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, aged 25 years old, in 1954.

Views On Violence
King believed that violence was not necessary as a means to an end. He believed in non-violent activism & pursued non-violent protests. He once said, the method of nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon available. One of his famous protests was the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which although resulting in Kings arrest, also ended racial segregation on all Montgomery public buses.

Oppositions
Despite the fact that King was well liked & admired by many he still had opposition from others. Throughout his participation in the civil rights movement he received criticism from many groups & individuals, including Malcolm X ( a more radical black rights campaigner who did not share Kings views) calling King an Uncle Tom & a chump.

Assassination
On March 29, 1968 King went to Memphis, Tennessee, to support black sanitary public works employees who were striking. On April 4 at 6.01pm, after delivering a speech at a rally the day before, King was shot down on the balcony of his hotel room. He died at 7.05pm that day at a local hospital. He requested the song 'Take My Hand, Precious Lord at his funeral.

Picture taken just after King was shot

Achievements & Legacy

King strived in achievement despite difficulties. In 1963, his march on Washington brought a huge crowd of supporters to march with him, which as a result the march was broadcast through the media and brought civil rights to the attention of many across America. As a result of his many achievements MLK was given many awards. Even after death he is fondly remembered by many as of having been a major cog in the wheel of the civil rights movement.

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