Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King Jr. was an influential civil rights leader that fought for justice and equality throughout his life. He protested laws that were unfair to African American’s and encouraged people to protest peacefully instead of with violence. Martin Luther King Jr. made a positive impact in society by changing unfair laws, helping to break down segregation, and spreading equality.

Martin Luther King Jr. was born January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. King experienced racism since he was five when a white friend’s parents wouldn’t let the boy play with him because he was black (Jakoubek 21). He did well in school and was able to graduate at fifteen and enroll in Morehouse College (32). King decided to become a minister like his father and attended Crozer Seminary College to get his bachelor’s degree at the age of 19 (34). King continued his education by earning his Doctorate from Boston University in 1955 (“Biography”). While in Boston studying King met a girl named Coretta who soon became his wife (Jakoubek 38). After receiving the blessing of the bride’s father, King and Coretta married on June 18, 1953 (38). King and Coretta went on to have four children named Yolanda Denise, Martin Luther III, Dexter Scott, and Bernice Albertine (“A Biographical Sketch”).

King’s first real work with the civil rights movement began with the bus boycott that took place in Montgomery, Alabama. King ended up leading the boycott which lasted about a year (“Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Change”). The boycott started when a woman named Rosa Parks was arrested for not getting up for a white man on a city bus. (“Martin Luther King Jr.” America’s Library). The bus driver then called the police and she was arrested. This sparked controversy throughout the community. King was doubtful at first on how well the boycott of busses would go since so many blacks relied on the busses to get to and from work (Jakoubek 45). The boycott lasted however and on December 13, 1956 King...