Dr. Martin Luther King - Essay Example

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Dr. Martin Luther King was a dominant figure in the Civil Rights Movement aimed at ending the racial discrimination in theUnited States during the 1950s and 1060s. He became the first individual to use nonviolent methods to achieve social change. Through his charisma and public speaking techniques, he was determined to bring equality to all races despite the risks associated with the fight. He won the Nobel Peace prize in 1964, and he was the man of the year in 1964 (Weider History1). Despite his drive for the social change, he was the target from the conservative segregationist who believed that the whites were superior and fearful for any social change. Martin Luther King contributed to the United States history by bringing a social change, and he was arrested several times, but he could not give up his fight. King death occurred through assassination in Memphis (Weider History1. His contributions on the US history are still felt to date. Martin Luther King Jr. was born on 15 Jan 1929 in Atlanta Georgia (Weider History 1). His family belonged to the protestant faithful and as a young boy started serving as a pastor in the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. King became the third member from his family to serve in the Church. Consequently, he followed the footsteps of his generation. Additionally, the trainings and the experiences he underwent gave him cadence and oratorical characters. Moreover, he underwent the educational that were taken by his father and grandfather. He attended a segregated public school in Georgia and graduated with B.A degree from the Atlanta Morehouse College that was traditionally called the black college. Later on, he proceeded to Crozer Theological Seminary where he studied theology (Weider History 1). Moreover, at the Seminary, he was elected as the president, but it was compromised the white students. Furthermore, he graduated with an advanced degree from Boston College in Massachusetts together with the doctorate he had been awarded in the early year. Still in Boston, he got married to Coretta Scott his lifetime partner and both were involved in the campaign of the civil rights movement (Weider History 1). In 1954, King and his wife moved to Alabama in Montgomery. In this place, he served as a pastor in Dexter Avenue Baptist Church (Weider History 1). King was an active member in the African American organization an advanced organization for the colored people. While still in Montgomery, he was an executive committee member and in December 1955, he led a boycott against the Montgomery's segregated bus system which took 382days. Negroes the term used to refer to Africans, majority of them were poor and were supposed to sit at the back of the bus (Weider History 1). Additionally, the blacks were supposed to relieve their seats if the white persons wanted them. Consequently, campaign made him a target from the segregationists who made 20 raids in his home and abused him personally by arresting and bombing his home. In 1957, a new organization was born. The southern Christian Leadership Conference whose aim was to achieve the civil rights of American and King was elected the chair. In the next 11 years, he led a massive campaign against segregation and racial discrimination. He traveled over six million miles, spoke over 2500 times in public events and wrote essays against racial discrimination (Weider History 1). In 1963, Martin Luther King attracted the attention of all America by leading the Birmingham civil rights demonstrations in Alabama (Weider History 1). Consequently, the African American pressed for change. Martin Luther King Jr. through his historic speech stressed the need of Americans to live to the spirit of the constitution. Additionally, in his dream King wanted the Americans to judge their character and not through their skin color (Bush 1). Consequently, King's dream has been achieved in his fight against social discrimination. Martin Luther King Jr. brought many achievements to the black people in the United States of America. He fought for many years in favor of civil rights in the United States. He and other civil rights activist led the famous bus boycott in Montgomery that led to change or equalization of all American citizens despite of their races. If this kind of discrimination continued, then President Barack Obama could not be elected to office in the second term as the president of the United States. Additionally, the boycott prompted the government of the United States to make a legal change that was issued by the Supreme Court in 1956 (Tosta 1). The era of Slavery had dominated in Alabama for hundreds of years whereby black people were treated like slaves and had to tolerate the discriminatory laws against them. Consequently, the Montgomery bus boycott set the blacks to rebel against the whites to bring equality. Martin Luther King was the pioneer architect of the movement despite the harassment he got from the separatists that were against the change of these laws. King being the president of the Montgomery Improvement Association led the boycott that plagued the whites (Tosta 1-4). He was awarded the Nobel Peace prize at the age of 35 years (Tosta 4). The money he got from the price he further channeled it to the foundation of the civil rights movement. Unfortunately, Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in Memphis on 4 April 1968 in Tennessee where he was scheduled to lead a demonstration in sympathy with the striking workers Tosta4). When he was a boy Martin Luther king, Jr. could not befriend everybody because of color. He knew that all people were the same inside and color had no impact on the character of a person. Consequently, King saw that there was a social problem in the United States and action was needed. His dream of social change changed the United States and the World. Up to now, he is still remembered as prominent social activist in the world. The major achievements of King include the use of nonviolent demonstrations to bring about change. He fought for equality for all races and standard has been set in all Countries of the world that all people must be treated equally irrespective of their color. Additionally, King's efforts led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that led to equal voting rights by turning his efforts to register the African American voters in the South (U.S.History 1). Moreover, in March 1965 he held a demonstration in Alabama to give more voting rights to African American voters in Alabama. The march was faced with hurdles because the police responded harshly, but the public opinion weighed more on King and the protestors. The march yielded to success because the Selma action led to the passage of equal voting rights Act of1965 (U.S.History 1). When King was, short dead violence broke out in most of the American cities while they mourned the death of their leader. In conclusion, Dr. Martin Luther King Junior was prominent social activist who underwent social discrimination while at a young age. He led the civil rights movement that led changes in the social system in the United States. He brought equality between the whites and the blacks. In addition, he increased the voting rights of the blacks. His dream has finally come true because all nations of the world have set a code that oversees equal rights to everybody despite the skin color. Works Cited Bush, George. “Message on the 40th Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" Speech”. 39.35 (2003): 1122-1123. “Martin Luther King Contributions.” Eiu.edu. Web 9th Dec 2014. Tosta Mylord. “Main Achievements of the Civil Rights Struggle and the Reelection of President of President Barack Obama”. Scientific International Journal. Nperci.org. Web 9th Dec 2014. U.S.History. “Martin Luther king Jr”.Ushistory.org. Web 9th Dec 2014. Weider History. “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr”. Historynet.com. Web 9th Dec 2014. Read More