Biography:The most visible and well-known leader of the Civil Rights Movement, King was a Baptist minister who helped advance civil rights through non-violent methods based on his Christian beliefs.
King founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and helped lead the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott early in his career. After the unsuccessful Albany Movement to end segregation in Albany, Georgia, he organised the March on Washington in 1963 where he delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. Though he alienated many of his liberal allies by calling for opposition to the Vietnam War, he remained highly popular.
In 1964 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In the midst of planning the Poor People's Campaign in Washington D.C., he was assassinated by James Earl Ray in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968. His death sparked massive nationwide riots. In 1986, Martin Luther King Day was inaugurated as a federal holiday.
1953-06-18 Civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. (24) weds fellow activist and singer Coretta Scott (26) on the lawn of her parent’s home in Marion, Alabama; ceremony officiated by his father
Historical Events
1955-12-05 Montgomery Improvement Association formed by Ralph Abernathy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Edgar Nixon to support the Montgomery bus protest in Montgomery, Alabama
1956-01-30 Home of Martin Luther King Jr. is bombed
1956-12-21 Montgomery bus boycott ends: Martin Luther King Jr., Ralph Abernathy, E. D. Nixon, and Glenn Smiley ride in new integrated bus after Supreme Court rules segregated buses unconditional
1957-01-12 Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC) founded with Martin Luther King Jr. as leader at Ebenezer Church in Atlanta
1957-02-14 Southern Christian Leadership Conference organizes in New Orleans with Martin Luther King Jr. as its President
1960-10-19 Martin Luther King Jr. arrested in Atlanta sit-in
1961-08-16 Martin Luther King Jr. protests for black voting rights in Miami, Florida
1961-12-15 Martin Luther King Jr. joins over 500 civil rights demonstrators in jail, arrested for protesting in Albany, Georgia
1962-07-10 Martin Luther King Jr. arrested during demonstration in Georgia
1962-07-27 Martin Luther King Jr. jailed in Albany, Georgia
1963-08-28 Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his "I have a dream" speech addressing the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom civil rights march at Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C.
1964-10-14 Martin Luther King Jr. announced as winner of the Nobel Peace Prize
1965-03-25 Martin Luther King Jr. leads 25,000 to state capitol in Montgomery, Alabama
1966-01-17 Martin Luther King Jr. opens the Chicago Campaign, a nonviolent campaign aimed at achieving fair housing practices
1966-08-05 Martin Luther King Jr. stoned during Chicago march
1968-03-04 Martin Luther King Jr. announces plans for Poor People's Campaign
1968-04-04 US civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee
1968-04-04 Riots break out in over 100 cities in the United States following the assassination of African-American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.
1968-04-07 Riots continue in over 100 US cities following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
1968-04-08 Major League Baseball decides to postpone Opening Day because of the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr
1968-04-09 Martin Luther King Jr., buried in Atlanta
Bobby Seale
Cesar Chavez
Jim Brown
Malcolm X
Nina Simone
Victoria Woodhull