Famous for his “I had a dream” speech as well as his belief that non-violence protests were the key to ending racism and segregation in America, Martin Luther King Jr.’s work, words and belief are still remembered today.
Born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929, King Jr. skipped two grades in high school and moved right on to study sociology at Morehouse College when he was fifteen. After receiving his BA at Morehead, he went on to Crozer Theological Seminary and earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree. He became a pastor when he was just 25 years old and went on to earn his PhD in systematic theology from Boston University.
He became interested in nonviolent protesting when taking a trip to India and being deeply affected by Gandhi’s peaceful protests and stated, “Since being in India, I am more convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for justice and human dignity.”
In 1955, King Jr. was inspired by Rosa Parks’s refusal to give up her seat to a white man in the coloured section of a bus when the white section was full. King Jr., along with fellow activist E.D. Nixon, led the Montgomery Bus Boycott which lasted for 385 days and eventually ended segregation on Montgomery public buses.
During the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, King Jr. gave his famous “I have a dream” speech, which still resonates to this day and confirmed his status as one of the best orators in history. The march also is memorable because it demanded the end of segregation as well as a list of other civil rights that protesters felt were missing. The march coupled with King Jr.’s speech led to the the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which ended segregation on America.
King Jr. continued his peaceful fight for civil equality until 1968 when he traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to support a civil cause. While speaking from the balcony of his hotel room to a crowd of admirers, he was shot dead by James Earl Ray.