While many people treat MLK Day as a time to rest, shop, and spend time with family, most go about their day without truly knowing the significance of this activist. King was more than just a man; he was a fighter with the ambition to end racial inequality and to bring justice to all. But where did it begin? Have his wow decisions had an impact on the world today? Well, it all started with a man who had a dream.
Early years
On January 15, 1929, in Atlanta,Georgia, Martin Luther King Jr. was born. The Great Depression just touched down on America this year and lasted about a decade. According to Stanford University, King always commented on the people in breadlines, as well as the racial and economic injustice amongst folks. He grew up with his older sister Willie Christine and younger brother Alfred Daniel, whom he called A.D. His father, MLK Sr., was a prominent pastor for their local church, and according to Stanford University, his Mother,Alberta, was known to King as “the best mother in the world”. King’s bond with his mother was quite strong, teaching her children about the racial discrimination in the world. This knowledge influenced King to begin his nonviolent philosophy, while continuing to seek out wisdom from Alberta.
Prime
At the age of fifteen, King was a freshman at Morehouse College in Atlanta. He was successfully able to skip two years of grade school and even follow in his father’s footsteps of becoming a Baptist minister. While he did have other plans of being a theologian, he decided to keep the family legacy going and become a minister. As time passed, King became bolder and confident in his dream. He transferred to Boston university where he got his P.H.D. in systematic theology. He really enjoyed the professors at his school, claiming them to be understanding and not teaching towards racial injustice. After the event of Rosa Parks ‘ release, King knew he needed to take action. So, he started the Montgomery bus boycott, where he and other African Americans protested against racial segregation on public transportation for 381 days. After a while, the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional to have segregation on buses.
Final years & assassination
When King tried moving his family into Atlanta, they were arrested during an Atlanta sit-in. King was taken to jail, where he wrote the famous letter, “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” His letter was primarily directed to White clergymen who described his methods to be “Unwise and untimely,” according to the Jack Miller Center. He believed that injustice anywhere was a threat to justice everywhere. It was just a few days later when King delivered his famous “ I have a dream” speech to the people. In this speech, he mentions having a dream that all are treated equally, people are judged by their personality and not skin color, and opportunity was equal to all folks. A year later, MLK was awarded a nonviolent peace prize for his contribution to the American civil rights movement. Unfortunately, 4 years later, he was killed from his balcony motel in Memphis, Tennessee.
While King’s death was a tragedy, his dream lives on. This event sparked violence amongst the African American community however, it also grew support. MLK was more than just a man, he was the ultimate sacrifice for equality in the world.
