Martin Luther King

(Born 15th January 1929 Died April 4th 1968)

By Eric Koroa
 Biography

Martin Luther King Jnr. Was born on January 15th 1929 in

Atlanta Georgia. He went to Booker T. Washington High School. He
started his college education at Morehouse College at the young age
of fifteen. After getting his degree in Sociology from Morehouse, he
got a divinity degree from Crozer Seminary and then went on to get
his doctors degree in Theology from Boston University.
His dad was a preacher, which inspired Martin to take on biblical
studies. He was the middle child of the family with an older sister and
a younger brother.
In 1953 he married Coretta Scott and had four children; Yolanda,
Martin, Dexter and Bernice.
Martin Luther King Jr was a civil activist in the 1950s and 1960s. He
led non-violent protests to fight for rights of all people including
African Americans.
On April 4, he was assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis,
Tennessee while standing on the balcony of his hotel.

By Eric Koroa
 The Rise of Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King achieved many things in his life. He also faced
many challenges along the way. He was determined to fight for
justice and equality for all Americans where there was no separation
between the colored and whites of America.

In the 1950s he became involved in the Civil Rights Movement. In

1955, Rosa Parks, a black woman was arrested because she didnt
give up her seat to a white person on a bus. Knowing very well what
the consequences of her actions would be, Rosa risked her freedom
to remain seated. The unfair treatment of Rosa Parks motivated him
and many other blacks to fight for equal rights between blacks and
whites. This incident lead to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which
Martin Luther King became president of. The boycott was successful.
The Supreme Court ruled that the laws requiring segregation on
buses were unlawful.

This started a war between the whites and blacks as the whites
wanted to force Martin to give up his fight for equal rights for blacks
by bombing his home. Despite all the persecutions and threats he
continued to fight for equal rights for black Americans.

Later in January 10, 1957 The Southern Christian Leadership

Conference was formed which King was named the leader of. This
was a group formed with the goal of redeeming the soul of America
through non-violent resistance. The organization drew on the power
and independence of black churches to support its activities. Much of
these activities included non-violent protest campaigns, speeches,
Christian nonviolence leadership training programs and opening
citizen schools.

By Eric Koroa
Martin Luther King was greatly responsible for the passing of two
major Acts. The Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act for African
Americans in the mid 1960s. Both acts not only changed American
Law but also had a major impact on the rest of the world. His
victories and speeches were inspirational to all who were involved in
racial injustice all over the world. The values he stood for
acceptance, equality and non-violent protests still echo throughout
history. To this day, his I have a dream speech remains as one of the
most inspiring words spoken. He is considered one of the greatest
speakers of modern times.

Some quotes from his famous speech:

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true
meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all
men are created equal."

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation
where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the
content of their character.

And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it
ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city,
we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black
men and white men, Jews and gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be
able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free
at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

The End~

By Eric Koroa
By Eric Koroa
By Eric Koroa