Franny billingsley biography of martin luther king

He continues to be remembered as one of the most influential and inspirational Black leaders in history. Originally, his name was Michael Luther King Jr. Michael Sr. In due time, Michael Jr. His mother was Alberta Williams King. The Williams and King families had roots in rural Georgia. Martin Jr. Williams, was a rural minister for years and then moved to Atlanta in He took over the small, struggling Ebenezer Baptist Church with around 13 members and made it into a forceful congregation.

He married Jennie Celeste Parks, and they had one child who survived, Alberta. Martin Sr. He married Alberta in after an eight-year courtship. The newlyweds moved to A. Martin stepped in as pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church upon the death of his father-in-law in He, too, became a successful minister. A middle child, Martin Jr. The King children grew up in a secure and loving environment.

Although they undoubtedly tried, Martin Jr. He strongly discouraged any sense of class superiority in his children, which left a lasting impression on Martin Jr. His baptism in May was less memorable for young King, but an event a few years later left him reeling. In May , when King was 12 years old, his grandmother Jennie died of a heart attack.

Distraught at the news, he jumped from a second-story window at the family home, allegedly attempting suicide. Growing up in Atlanta, King entered public school at age 5. He later attended Booker T. Washington High School, where he was said to be a precocious student. He skipped both the ninth and eleventh grades and, at age 15, entered Morehouse College in Atlanta in He was a popular student, especially with his female classmates, but largely unmotivated, floating through his first two years.

Influenced by his experiences with racism, King began planting the seeds for a future as a social activist early in his time at Morehouse. At the time, King felt that the best way to serve that purpose was as a lawyer or a doctor. Although his family was deeply involved in the church and worship, King questioned religion in general and felt uncomfortable with overly emotional displays of religious worship.

But in his junior year at Morehouse, King took a Bible class, renewed his faith, and began to envision a career in the ministry. In the fall of his senior year, he told his father of his decision, and he was ordained at Ebenezer Baptist Church in February Later that year, King earned a sociology degree from Morehouse College and began attended the liberal Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania.

He thrived in all his studies, was elected student body president, and was valedictorian of his class in He also earned a fellowship for graduate study.

Franny billingsley biography of martin luther king

He became romantically involved with a white woman and went through a difficult time before he could break off the relationship. Mays was an outspoken advocate for racial equality and encouraged King to view Christianity as a potential force for social change. After being accepted at several colleges for his doctoral study, King enrolled at Boston University.

He completed his doctorate and earned his degree in at age A committee of scholars appointed by Boston University determined that King was guilty of plagiarism in , though it also recommended against the revocation of his degree. As explained in his autobiography , King previously felt that the peaceful teachings of Jesus applied mainly to individual relationships, not large-scale confrontations.

It was in this Gandhian emphasis on love and nonviolence that I discovered the method for social reform that I had been seeking. Led by his religious convictions and philosophy of nonviolence, King became one of the most prominent figures of the Civil Rights Movement. He was a founding member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and played key roles in several major demonstrations that transformed society.

The effort began on December 1, , when year-old Rosa Parks boarded the Cleveland Avenue bus to go home after work. As more passengers boarded, several white men were left standing, so the bus driver demanded that Parks and several other African Americans give up their seats. Conflict in Birmingham reaches its peak when high-pressure fire hoses force demonstrators from the business district.

The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom attracts more than two hundred thousand demonstrators to the Lincoln Memorial. Organized by A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin , the march is supported by all major civil rights organizations as well as by many labor and religious groups. After the march, King and other civil rights leaders meet with President John F.

Kennedy and Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson in the White House. Carole Robertson, the fourth victim, was buried in a separate ceremony. President Lyndon B. Robert Hayling , leader of the movement in St. King meets Malcolm X in Washington, D. King is arrested and jailed for demanding service at a white-only restaurant in St. Augustine, Florida.

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In , Dr. King was shot dead for his beliefs. What did Dr. Dr Martin Luther King Jr. He gave a famous speech to lots of people in Washington in In it, he said he had a dream that life for his children could be different from how it had been for him. During his life, he was arrested and sent to prison 29 times. Did you know? When Dr. This made him very sad.