Martin Luther King Jr. - A 5 Minute Biography
Biography
A 5 Minute Biography of Martin Luther King Jr.
He was a minister. A poet. A lover of words and freedom. He was a family man. A talented speaker, a seeker of truth and justice. He met every challenge he faced, and by the time he went home to the lord, he was already an American icon. He was Martin Luther King Jr., and this is his story. He was born Michael Luther King Jr. that had his name changed to Martin later in life.
His grandfather and father were pastors of the ebenezer baptist church in Atlanta. The family legacy served there since 1914. And from 1960 until his death, Martin Luther King Jr. acted as co pastor alongside his father. Martin attended segregated public schools in Georgia, graduating from high school at the age of 15 after skipping two grades. He was a talented young man, receiving his bachelor of the arts degree in 1948 from Morehouse college. A distinguished institution in Atlanta, which both his father and grandfather graduated from. After three years of theological study at crozer theological seminary, which he was also elected the president of. He was awarded bachelor of divinity in 1951.
He then enrolled in graduate studies at Boston University and received his PhD in 1955. In Boston, he also met and married coretta Scott, an intellectual and artistic young woman. They bore two sons and two daughters. In 1954, Martin Luther King Jr. became pastor of the Dexter avenue baptist church in Montgomery, Alabama. He was a strong advocate for civil rights in the black community. He held a position in the executive committee of the NAACP. The leading civil rights advocates at that time. As a member, one of his tasks was to organize the first great civil rights protest ever to occur in the United States contemporary history.
This was A380 two day long bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama. For at the time, people of different races were not allowed to ride in the same sections of the bus, and sometimes not even on the same buses at all. The boycott would prove to be quite effective for on December 21st, 1956. The Supreme Court of the United States declared unconstitutional all the laws requiring segregation on buses. During this boycott, king was arrested. His home was bombed. He was subject to personal abuse, but at the same time he emerged as a hero in the civil rights community. Martin Luther King Jr. is not just famous, however, for his I have a dream speech.
What is the most outstanding is he based his entire model for the nonviolent movement on his experience as a Christian minister. He led massive protests at top the attention of the entire world, all stemming from his belief that all men are created equal under God. Before a crowd of nearly 250,000 people, he made a proclamation. And that proclamation was that we should not be judged by the color of our skin, but rather by the content of our character. And his character was one of greatness. One that will be remembered in the history books as a man beyond reproach.
A man who received the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 35. A man who has given distinguished honors from leaders all over the world. A champion for the rights of those who have none. Would that he were with us today but alas, it is not so. A sniper ended his life on April 4th, 1968, as he was standing on the balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee. But though the man died that day, his legacy lives on. It lives on in the hearts of those who are like minded. Christ followers seeking true equality. Not the fraudulent equality that puts one above another. But a truly colorblind equality. And one that values each person as a child of God. And as children of God ourselves, we must do all that we can to make sure that his dream is upheld and his legacy is not forgotten. That we too may join on that triumphant day in saying free at last. Free at last, thank God almighty. We are free at last.