Announcements

FROM: The Office of Multicultural Affairs and Diversity Education RE: Celebrate Black History Month- Martin Luther King, Jr. - American Baptist Minister, Political Activist
Sent:
2/28/2019 10:32:55 AM
To: Students, Faculty, Staff

“I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.…I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream that…one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.” – MLK, Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an American political activist and champion of the civil rights movement. Born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, King grew up in the neighborhood Sweet Auburn where many of the city’s prominent African American families lived. He Attended Morehouse College at the age of fifteen, where his father and grandfather had attended as well.1 By the time King became a pastor in 1954, he was already a vital member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). In 1955, King led his first nonviolent protest, the Montgomery Bus Boycott, inspired by Rosa Parks. The boycott lasted over a year until the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional to require buses to be segregated. As the annals of history reflect, between 1957 and 1968, King traveled over six million miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, fighting racism and injustice, through peaceful protest. He also authored five books and numerous articles. During this time he also famously directed a nonviolent, peaceful march on Washington, D.C. where he delivered the “I Have A Dream” speech. His actions did not come without challenges; King was arrested more than twenty times for his activism. King’s accolades included being named “Man of the Year” for Time Magazine, awarded five honorary degrees, and was the youngest man to receive a Nobel Peace Prize at the age of thirty-five.  On April 4, 1968, King was fatally wounded after being shot on the balcony of a Memphis motel, leaving behind a legacy that continues to impact the U. S. political landscape.2

1.        https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr

2.        https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1964/king/biographical/

3.        https://www.britannica.com/topic/I-Have-A-Dream