martin luther king jr.

Background

• Martin Luther King Jr. was born in January 15th 1929
• He was born in Atlanta Georgia
• Grew up to be a Christian
• Son of Martin Luther King Sr.
• An African American who sought freedom

Important Events

• 1929- Born in Atlanta,GA
• 1953- Married to Coretta Scott
• 1954-55- Montgomery Bus Boycott
• 1957- King and other civil rights activists founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference

Important Events Cont.

• 1963- March on Washington
• 1964- Youngest person ever awarded the Noble Peace prize
• 1965- Congress passed the Voting Rights Act.
• 1968- Assassinated by James Earl Ray

MONTGOMERY BUS BOYCOTT

• On December 1st, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to get up for a white passenger
• She was arrested later
• Led to a bus boycott that would continue for 381 more days
• They selected Martin Luther King Jr. as the protest leader and offical spokesman

MARCH ON WASHINGTON

• Occured August 28, 1965 when King worked with others to organize it
• It was a peacful political rally to stop racism
• During the march, King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech to thousands
• He was awarded Man of the Year from TIME and won the Noble Peace Prize
• Also led to Congress passing the "Voting Rights Act"

Final years and assassination

• On April 4 1965 King was on a balcony in Memphis and was assassinated
• He was shot by a white man named James Earl Ray
• James Earl Ray was later arrested

WHY HE's A TRUE LEGEND

• MLK was a true leader because...
• He sought equality for all humans
• He strived for this equality
• He made life better for African Americans
• He changed the world's perspective on racism