The Historical Contributions of Martin Luther King, Jr

 

Martin Luther King Jr. has become one of the most historical people in American time. He was one of the lead civil rights activists during civil war times. This was a time in America where the states were against each other. African Americans were treated unfairly and were demanding fair and equal rights. He was considered a leader of this civil rights movement. These are some of the most important facts about Martin Luther King Jr.?s movement.

Michael versus Martin Luther
Few know that Martin was actually born as Michael Luther King. He grew up in Atlanta, which was directly in the middle of the civil rights activity movement. While he started out as a Baptist minister, he eventually took his skill in leadership and preaching to the movement. His way with words and communicating quickly led others to see him as a role model. He was able to organize successful and peaceful protects that later emitted change. His pastoral knowledge likely originated from his father and other familial relationships. Religion was a huge part of the family, while King grew up in the city.

The education of Martin Luther
It is likely that Martin Luther King?s education and background contributed strongly to his successful movement attempts. He was highly educated in some of the best, yet segregated, schools. He attended both undergraduate and graduate college with high grades and honors. He even met his future to be wife during his graduate educational years. They later married and produced four children.

A time of segregation
Not only did Martin Luther King, his wife, and his young children experience multiple instances of segregation, but there were numerous other situations of segregation occurring all over the country. The most famous of these segregation incidents is of Rosa Parks, who refused to give up her seat on a bus. This led to an arrest of Rosa Parks, which in turn, created a boycott of the entire bus system of the city. Another segregation situation occurred with the famous case of Brown v. Board of Education. Martin Luther was an important part of rallying behind these famous cases.

Numerous activist protests and movements
King dedicated his life to perusing equality for African Americans. He led many peaceful political rallies and was often a lead speaker for these rallies. Many documentary filmmakers actually have a lot of these peaceful protects on video and audio for the public to view. These speeches are truly inspiring and historical in their own right. However, nothing compared to his infamous speech of the well known MLK speech. This speech was an important step into achieving African American rights.

The famous MLK speech
The famous MLK speech, I have a Dream, was in hopes of finding peach within the civil rights movement. This famous MLK speech took place on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, which was very moving for some. The Lincoln Memorial is often seen as an important historical piece, as Lincoln was the first president to end and bring down slavery. This speech not only became famous, but made MLK historical and well known around the world. He became a Nobel Peace Prize winner just a few years later. MLK later went on to other famous movements, such as the Selma march.

The life of MLK, ended too soon
MLK was assassinated by radicals who did not agree with his peaceful protests and movements, or with the goal of his movement. Following his assassination, there was an increase in city riots and the person responsible was sentenced to life in prison. However, the life of MLK will still live on and his famous MLK speech will continue to be heard by many.