A gifted orator and leader, Dr. King was the predominant voice of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s. His non-violent protests and his eloquent speeches for social justice won the support of millions of Americans. The civil rights movement succeeded in gaining equal rights and voting rights for minorities.
Take a quick glimpse at King’s life and remarkable achievements:
1. King was born Michael King Jr., Jan. 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Ga. Five years later, King's father changed both their names to Martin Luther, after the Reformation leader.
2. King skipped the ninth and 12th grades and entered Morehouse College at age 15. 3. When King received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, he was the youngest man ever to receive the honor. At 35, King was also only the second American and the third black man to receive the award. Ralph Bunche was the first (1950), and Albert Luthuli (1960) was the second.
4. King had originally planned to become a doctor. Instead, he majored in sociology, graduated from Morehouse College with a B.A., then entered Crozer Theological Seminary. Both King's father and maternal grandfather were ministers. King was ordained a Baptist minister in 1948.
5. King went by the nickname M.L.6. King was successful in getting the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed in Congress. These rights were pivotal in reversing discrimination perpetrated through Jim Crow laws and grandfather clauses. The Civil Rights Act prohibited discrimination in public places, called for the integration of public schools and public facilities and made discrimination in employment practices illegal. The Voting Rights Act outlawed literacy tests and poll taxes that had prevented African Americans from having a voice in the voting process.
7. King authored six books. The titles include 'Stride Toward Freedom,' a story of the Montgomery Bus Boycott; 'The Measure of a Man' and 'Strength to Love,' selected sermons; 'Why We Can't Wait,' the story of the Birmingham campaign; 'Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community?' and reflections on the nuclear arms race and other contemporary world issues.
8. King and his wife Coretta Scott had four children. From oldest to youngest, they are: Yolanda Denise, Martin Luther III, Dexter Scott and Bernice Albertine.
9. King was assassinated April 4, 1968. James Earl Ray was convicted of the killing and sentenced to 99 years in jail. Ray, an escaped convict, pleaded guilty to the crime in March 1969. He died in 1998.
10. Coretta Scott King passed away Jan. 30, 2006. Mrs. King championed her husband's causes and was an important and influential leader in her own right. Her body lay in the rotunda of the Georgia Capitol, becoming the first woman and the first African American to receive that honor. George W. Bush and three former Presidents attended her funeral, praising her lifetime of dedication to the civil rights movement.
