Martin Luther King Jr.

Profession: Civil Rights Activist

Nationality:

Biography: The most visible and well-known leader of the Civil Rights Movement, King was a Baptist minister who helped advance civil rights through non-violent methods based on his Christian beliefs.

King founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and helped lead the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott early in his career. After the unsuccessful Albany Movement to end segregation in Albany, Georgia, he organised the March on Washington in 1963 where he delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. Though he alienated many of his liberal allies by calling for opposition to the Vietnam War, he remained highly popular.

In 1964 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In the midst of planning the Poor People's Campaign in Washington D.C., he was assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. His death sparked massive nationwide riots. In 1986, Martin Luther King Day was inaugurated as a federal holiday.

Born: January 15, 1929
Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Generation: Silent Generation
Chinese Zodiac: Dragon
Star Sign: Capricorn

Died: April 4, 1968 (aged 39)
Cause of Death: Assassination

Articles and Photos

Married Life

1953-06-18 Civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. (24) weds fellow activist and singer Coretta Scott (26) on the lawn of her parent’s home in Marion, Alabama; ceremony officiated by his father

Historical Events

1955-12-05 Montgomery Improvement Association formed by Ralph Abernathy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Edgar Nixon to support the Montgomery bus protest in Montgomery, Alabama
1956-01-30 Home of Martin Luther King Jr. is bombed
1956-12-21 Martin Luther King Jr. and others sit in the new integrated bus
1957-01-12 Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC) founded with Martin Luther King Jr. as leader at Ebenezer Church in Atlanta
1957-02-13 Southern Christian Leadership Conference organizes in New Orleans with Martin Luther King Jr. as President
1960-10-19 Martin Luther King Jr. arrested in Atlanta sit-in
1961-08-16 Martin Luther King Jr. protests for black voting rights in Miami, Florida
1961-12-16 Martin Luther King Jr. joins over 500 jailed demonstrators who had been arrested in Albany, Georgia
1962-07-10 Martin Luther King Jr. arrested during demonstration in Georgia
1962-07-27 Martin Luther King Jr. jailed in Albany, Georgia
1963-08-28 Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his "I have a dream" speech addressing the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom civil rights march at Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.
1964-10-14 Martin Luther King Jr. announced as winner of the Nobel Peace Prize
1964-11-18 J. Edgar Hoover describes Martin Luther King Jr. as a "most notorious liar"
1964-12-01 Martin Luther King Jr. speaks to J. Edgar Hoover about his slander campaign
1964-12-10 Nobel Peace Prize presented to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Oslo, Norway
1965-01-02 Martin Luther King Jr. begins a drive to register black voters
1965-02-01 Martin Luther King Jr. and 700 demonstrators arrested in Selma, Alabama
1965-03-21 Martin Luther King Jr. begins march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama
1965-03-25 Martin Luther King Jr. leads 25,000 to state capitol in Montgomery, Alabama
1966-01-17 Martin Luther King Jr. opens campaign in Chicago
1966-08-05 Martin Luther King Jr. stoned during Chicago march
1968-03-04 Martin Luther King Jr. announces plans for Poor People's Campaign
1968-04-04 US civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee
1968-04-04 Riots break out in over 100 cities in the United States following the assassination of African-American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.
1968-04-07 Riots continue in over 100 US cities following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
1968-04-09 Martin Luther King Jr., buried in Atlanta
1977-07-11 US Medal of Freedom awarded posthumously to Rev Martin Luther King Jr.
1979-01-14 US President Jimmy Carter proposes Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday be a federal holiday
1983-10-19 US Senate establishes Martin Luther King Jr. Day as federal holiday, observed on the 3rd Monday in January (on or near his 1/15 birthday)
1983-11-02 US President Ronald Reagan signs bill establishing Dr Martin Luther King Jr. holiday
1986-01-20 1st US federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr. or MLK Day
1991-03-19 NFL owners strip Phoenix of the 1993 Super Bowl game due to Arizona not recognizing federal holiday Martin Luther King Jr. Day
1993-01-18 Martin Luther King Jr. holiday observed in all 50 states of the USA for 1st time
2015-09-24 Pope Francis becomes the 1st pope to address the US Congress. Names Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Thomas Merton and Dorothy Day as his American heroes.
2018-03-13 National Geographic magazine admits its past coverage was racist in issue to mark 50 years since death of Martin Luther King Jr.