Dr. Martin Luther King

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Eula Aikens

Prof. Dr. L. Staggers

African American Lit.

Outline

Introduction

I. Dr. Martin Luther King's Legacy According to

a. Dick Gregory

b. Condoleezza Rice

c. Martin Luther King III

d. Jesse Jackson

e. Forest Whitker

I. Young Martins childhood

a. Educating young Martin

II. Martin meets Coretta

III. Civil Rights

a. Montgomery Bus Boycott

b. SCLC

c. Ralph Abernathy

d. March on Washington

IV. J. Edgar Hoover

a. Civil Rights Workers

V. Nobel Peace Prize

VI. Voting and Fair Housing

a. Selma to Montgomery

b. Chicago 1966

VII. Critic

a. Malcolm X

b. Jeb C. Johnson

c. John Birch Society

VIII. Conclusion

IX. References

Works Cited

John Birch Society www.johnbirchsociety.com

King-TBD, Martin Luther King (1996-2011).A&E Television Networks http://www.history.com/show/king/videos.html

McCarty, Laura T (2009). Coretta Scott King A Biography. Westport, Greenwood Press.

Miller, William R (1968). Martin Luther King, Jr. New York, Weybright and Talley, Inc

Rieder, Jonathan, (2008). The Word of The Lord is Upon Me. Cambridge, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Sundquist, Eric J (2009). King's Dream. London, Yale University Press.

The Last Days of Martin Luther King Jr." http://www.thelastdaysof martinlutherkingjr.com

Reston, James, I have a Dream Peroration by Dr. King Sums Up A Day the Capital Will Remember 1963 New York Times. 04 Feb. 2011 http://graphics8.NYtimes.com

Weigant, Chris, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's Vietnam Speech 2001 Huffington Post. 04 Feb. 2011 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-weigant/drmartin-luther

According to many affluent people Dr. King's legacy is composed of many different aspects of his message. Activist Dick Gregory believes his is that he redefined manhood. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice believes his legacy to be that he brought about the second founding of America by calling for it to live up to its founding father's beliefs. His son Martin Luther King III interprets of his legacy to be the Spirit of Love and Every man is my brother. The Reverend Jesse Jackson sees his legacy as the change of social order in this country. Actor Forest Whittaker believes that Dr. King's legacy was that he created a vision that made it possible for African American's to believe they could achieve their dreams. Only a few people in history have accomplished this they are such social activist as, Ghandi and Nelson Mandela (King - TBD martin Luther King Jr.)

On January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia it was a day no different than any other day with the exception that a black child was born that would change a people and a world's way of thinking. This child would go on to receive the Nobel Peace Prize and later become the first person in the Western world to preach of nonviolence and to show the world that a struggle could be won without lifting a hand in violence. King's message was to all men, nations and races. He knew by preaching nonviolence the world would listen. He was the first to make the message of brotherly love a reality in the 20th century. This is the legacy and life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (Martin Luther King Biography 2011).

King was born Michael Luther King Jr., child number two and the first male child born to a Baptist minister in Atlanta, Georgia. When he was six years old two white playmates were forbidden to play with him. When he went looking for them their mother met him at the door and told him white boys didn't play with black boys. This is when his mother sat him down and explained to him about segregation. Little white boys didn't play with little black boys. She told young Martin that he was still as good as anyone else. Reverend King senior showed him his vision by telling him one day about Martin Luther, the great leader of the reformation, and told him that from now on they would both be named after him.

Years later Martin admitted that those cruel words spoken by the white mother altered the direction of his life. As a teenager he went through school with great honors. He skipped ninth and twelfth grades. He excelled on the violin and as a public speaker. Martin and his teacher were studying on a bus after he won first prize in a debating tournament. When the bus stopped they were discussing events when the bus driver ordered them to give up their seats for two white passengers. He recalled being infuriated. He later admitted that he was going to stay in his seat and protest but his teacher persuaded him to obey the law and they stood for the remaining 90 mile trip. That night would never leave his mind as long as he lived. Martin believed this to the angriest he had ever been in his life (Martin Luther King Biography, 2011)

By the age of 15, Martin had already become the assistant pastor of Ebenezer Baptist church in Atlanta, Georgia. At the age of 15 young Martin graduated from segregated public schools in Georgia (Martin Luther King Biography, 2011). In 1948 he earned a BA degree from Morehouse College a distinguished Negro institution in Atlanta from which his father and grandfather had graduated. After three years of theological study at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, where he had been elected class president