MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.DAY

January 17, 2011

Martin Luther King Jr. once said he dreamed of a day when his four black children could walk to school holding hands with white children.

Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But in 1963, when he told Americans about that dream in a famous speech he made in Washington, D.C., it seemed impossible.

Even though his goals might have seemed unattainable, Martin Luther King Jr. continued to dream.

He dreamed of a world in which the laws protected everyone, not just whites.

He dreamed of a world in which poor people could hope for a better life.

He inspired millions of other people to dream with him.

In the end he died for that dream.

Lets get to know more about MLK Martin Luther King Jr. was born on

January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. 1944 – MLK graduated from high school

at the age of 15. 1948 – MLK graduated from Morehouse

College

1953

MLK marries Coretta Scott at the age of 24.

1954

The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Brown v. Board of Education that racial segregation in public schools is unconstitutional.

1955 MLK joins the bus boycott after Rosa Parks

was arrested on December 1. On December 5, he is elected president of the Montgomery Improvement Association, making him the official spokesman for the boycott

1956

On November 13, the Supreme Court rules that bus segregation is illegal, ensuring victory for the boycott.

1960

In Atlanta, King is arrested during a sit-in waiting to be served at a restaurant. He is sentenced to four months in jail, but after intervention by John Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, he is released.

1963 The March on Washington held August 28 is

the largest civil rights demonstration in history with nearly 250,000 people in attendance.

At the march, King makes his famous I Have a Dream speech.

“I have a dream”

1964 On January 3, King appears on the cover of Time

magazine as its Man of the Year.

King attends the signing ceremony of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 at the White House on July 2.

King is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10. Dr. King is the youngest person to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for Peace at age 35.

1966 MLK moves into a Chicago slum. On July 10, King initiates a campaign to end

discrimination in housing, employment, and schools in Chicago.

1968 Dr. King marches in support of sanitation

workers on strike in Memphis, Tennessee.

On March 28, King lead a march that turns violent. This was the first time one of his events had turned violent.

1968 cont. Delivered I've Been to the Mountaintop

speech. At sunset on April 4, Martin Luther King, Jr. is fatally shot while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.

1968 cont. There are riots and disturbances in 130

American cities. There were twenty thousand arrests.

1968 cont. King's funeral on April 9 is an international

event.

1983 A national holiday was created in Martin

Luther King’s honor. This day is held on the 3rd Monday in

January every year.

What might your life be like now, if the world had not known Martin Luther King Jr.?