130-526: Campaigns Death and memorial Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr. ; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, activist , and political philosopher who was one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. King advanced civil rights for people of color in the United States through
260-717: A Bachelor of Arts in sociology in 1948, aged nineteen. King enrolled in Crozer Theological Seminary in Upland, Pennsylvania , and took several courses at the University of Pennsylvania . At Crozer, King was elected president of the student body. At Penn, King took courses with William Fontaine , Penn's first African-American professor, and Elizabeth F. Flower , a professor of philosophy. King's father supported his decision to continue his education and made arrangements for King to work with J. Pius Barbour ,
390-412: A Children's Crusade . The Birmingham Police Department, led by Eugene "Bull" Connor , used high-pressure water jets and police dogs against protesters, including children. Footage of the police response was broadcast on national television news, shocking many white Americans and consolidating black Americans behind the movement. Not all of the demonstrators were peaceful, despite the avowed intentions of
520-818: A B-plus average. The high school was the only one in the city for African-American students. Martin Jr. was brought up in a Baptist home; as he entered adolescence he began to question the literalist teachings preached at his father's church. At the age of 13, he denied the bodily resurrection of Jesus during Sunday school . Martin Jr. said that he found himself unable to identify with the emotional displays from congregants who were frequent at his church; he doubted if he would ever attain personal satisfaction from religion. He later said of this point in his life, "doubts began to spring forth unrelentingly." In high school, Martin King Jr. became known for his public-speaking ability, with
650-440: A banister and hit Jennie, causing her to fall unresponsive. Martin Jr. believing her dead, blamed himself and attempted suicide by jumping from a second-story window, but rose from the ground after hearing that she was alive. Martin King Jr. became friends with a white boy whose father owned a business across the street from his home. In September 1935, when the boys were about six years old, they started school. King had to attend
780-459: A church filled with white congregants. King wrote to his parents about the lack of segregation, relaying how he was amazed they could go to "one of the finest restaurants in Hartford" and that "Negroes and whites go to the same church". He played freshman football there. The summer before his last year at Morehouse, in 1947, the 18-year-old King chose to enter the ministry . He would later credit
910-518: A church in the South. King tearfully told a friend that he could not endure his mother's pain over the marriage and broke the relationship off six months later. One friend was quoted as saying, "He never recovered." Other friends, including Harry Belafonte , said Betty had been "the love of King's life." King graduated with a Bachelor of Divinity in 1951. He applied to the University of Edinburgh for
1040-669: A compromise was reached, which involved the use of landscaping to make the security barriers appear less intrusive upon the area. The compromise plan was approved in October 2009, clearing the way for construction of the memorial to begin. It was announced in January 2007 that Lei Yixin , an artist from the People's Republic of China, would sculpt the centerpiece of the memorial including the Stone of Hope , his statue of King. The commission
1170-784: A doctorate in the School of Divinity but ultimately chose Boston instead. In 1951, King began doctoral studies in systematic theology at Boston University , and worked as an assistant minister at Boston's historic Twelfth Baptist Church with William Hunter Hester. Hester was an old friend of King's father and was an important influence on King. In Boston, King befriended a small cadre of local ministers his age, and sometimes guest pastored at their churches, including Michael E. Haynes , associate pastor at Twelfth Baptist Church in Roxbury. The young men often held bull sessions in their apartments, discussing theology, sermon style, and social issues. At
1300-434: A family friend and Crozer alumnus who pastored at Calvary Baptist Church in nearby Chester, Pennsylvania . King became known as one of the "Sons of Calvary", an honor he shared with William Augustus Jones Jr. and Samuel D. Proctor , who both went on to become well-known preachers. King reproved another student for keeping beer in his room once, saying they shared responsibility as African Americans to bear "the burdens of
1430-577: A friend from Atlanta named Mary Powell, a student at the New England Conservatory of Music , if she knew any nice Southern girls. Powell spoke to fellow student Coretta Scott ; Scott was not interested in dating preachers but eventually agreed to allow King to telephone her based on Powell's description and vouching. On their first call, King told Scott, "I am like Napoleon at Waterloo before your charms," to which she replied, "You haven't even met me." King married Scott on June 18, 1953, on
SECTION 10
#17327797119221560-611: A full decade before the moral guidance of Brown v. Board of Education was translated into the enforcement measures of the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, but those 10 long years did not lead Dr. King to give up. He kept on pushing, he kept on speaking, he kept on marching until change finally came. And then when, even after the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act passed, African Americans still found themselves trapped in pockets of poverty across
1690-753: A lack of interest in grammar and spelling, a trait that persisted throughout his life. In 1939, King sang as a member of his church choir dressed as a slave for the all-white audience at the Atlanta premiere of the film Gone with the Wind . In September 1940, at the age of 11, King was enrolled at the Atlanta University Laboratory School for the seventh grade . While there, King took violin and piano lessons and showed keen interest in history and English classes. On May 18, 1941, when King had sneaked away from studying at home to watch
1820-496: A marble and bronze plaque was laid by Alpha Phi Alpha to dedicate the site where the memorial was to be built. Soon thereafter, a full-time fundraising team began the fundraising and promotional campaign for the memorial. A ceremonial groundbreaking for the memorial was held on November 13, 2006, in West Potomac Park . In August 2008, the foundation's leaders estimated the memorial would take 20 months to complete with
1950-587: A memorial in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. is one that captures the essence of his message, a message in which he so eloquently affirms the commanding tenants [ sic ] of the American Dream – Freedom, Democracy and Opportunity for All; a noble quest that gained him the Nobel Peace Prize and one that continues to influence people and societies throughout the world. Upon reflection, we are reminded that Dr. King's lifelong dedication to
2080-650: A parade, he was informed that something had happened to his maternal grandmother. After returning home, he learned she had a heart attack and died while being transported to a hospital. He took her death very hard and believed that his deception in going to see the parade may have been responsible for God taking her. King jumped out of a second-story window at his home but again survived. His father instructed him that Martin Jr. should not blame himself and that she had been called home to God as part of God's plan. Martin Jr. struggled with this. Shortly thereafter, Martin Sr. decided to move
2210-523: A penny." He added that King would have been "absolutely scandalized by the profiteering behavior of his children." The family pledged that any money derived would go back to the King Center's charitable efforts. The foundation has paid various fees to the King family's Intellectual Properties Management Inc., including a management fee of $ 71,700 in 2003 (equivalent to $ 118,800 in 2023). In 2009,
2340-558: A school for black children, Yonge Street Elementary School, while his playmate went to a separate school for white children only. Soon afterwards, the parents of the white boy stopped allowing King to play with their son, stating to him, "we are white, and you are colored". When King relayed this to his parents, they talked with him about the history of slavery and racism in America , which King would later say made him "determined to hate every white person". His parents instructed him that it
2470-609: A set path to follow the quotations, instead being able to start reading at any point. Because the main theme of the Memorial is linked to King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech, none of the quotations on the Inscription Wall come from that speech. The selection of quotes was announced at a special event at the National Building Museum on February 9, 2007 (at the same time the identity of the sculptor
2600-420: A situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation." The campaign's early volunteers did not succeed in shutting down the city, or in drawing media attention to the police's actions. Over the concerns of an uncertain King, SCLC strategist James Bevel changed the course of the campaign by recruiting children and young adults to join the demonstrations. Newsweek called this strategy
2730-534: A speech like "I Have a Dream" or the Nobel Peace Prize: We don't even see his feet. He is embedded in the rock like something not yet fully born, suited and stern, rising from its roughly chiseled surface. His face is uncompromising, determined, his eyes fixed in the distance, not far from where Jefferson stands across the water. But kitsch here strains at the limits of resemblance: Is this the Dr. King of
SECTION 20
#17327797119222860-452: A time when both parties were courting the support of Southern Whites and their political leadership including Governor Vandiver. Nixon, with whom King had a closer relationship before, declined to make a statement despite a personal visit from Jackie Robinson requesting his intervention. Nixon's opponent John F. Kennedy called the governor (a Democrat) directly, enlisted his brother Robert to exert more pressure on state authorities, and, at
2990-621: A total cost of US$ 120 million. As of December 2008, the foundation had raised approximately $ 108 million, including substantial contributions from such donors as General Motors , Tommy Hilfiger , Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation , The Walt Disney Company Foundation, the NBA , NFL Players Association , National Association of Realtors , and filmmakers George Lucas and Steven Spielberg . The figure also includes $ 10 million in matching funds provided by
3120-476: A voice that had grown into an orotund baritone . He joined the school's debate team. King continued to be most drawn to history and English , and chose English and sociology as his main subjects. King maintained an abundant vocabulary . However, he relied on his sister Christine to help him with spelling, while King assisted her with math. King also developed an interest in fashion, commonly wearing polished patent leather shoes and tweed suits, which gained him
3250-569: Is a national memorial located in West Potomac Park next to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. , United States. It covers four acres (1.6 ha) and includes the Stone of Hope , a granite statue of civil rights movement leader Martin Luther King Jr. carved by sculptor Lei Yixin . The inspiration for the memorial design is a line from King's " I Have a Dream " speech: "Out of
3380-453: Is a paraphrased version of a longer quote by King: "If you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter." The memorial's use of the paraphrased version of the quote was criticized, and was removed in August 2013. Artists involved in
3510-400: Is a result of an early effort of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity to erect a monument to King. King was a member of the fraternity, initiated into the organization via Sigma Chapter on June 22, 1952, while he was attending Boston University completing his doctoral studies. King remained involved with the fraternity after the completion of his studies, including delivering the keynote speech at
3640-461: Is at the mercy of the meanest white man." King was selected as the winner of the contest. On the ride home to Atlanta by bus, he and his teacher were ordered by the driver to stand so that white passengers could sit. The driver of the bus called King a "black son-of-a-bitch". King initially refused but complied after his teacher told him that he would be breaking the law if he did not. As all the seats were occupied, he and his teacher were forced to stand
3770-764: Is envisioned as a quiet and peaceful space. Yet drawing from Dr. King's speeches and using his own rich language, the King Memorial will almost certainly change the heart of every person who visits. Against the backdrop of the Lincoln Memorial, with stunning views of the Tidal Basin and the Jefferson Memorial, the Memorial will be a public sanctuary where future generations of Americans, regardless of race, religion, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation, can come to honor Dr. King. The memorial
3900-646: Is intended to create a visual "line of leadership" from the Lincoln Memorial , on whose steps King gave his " I Have a Dream " speech at the March on Washington, to the Jefferson Memorial . The centerpiece for the memorial is based on a line from King's "I Have A Dream" speech: "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope." A 30-foot (9.1 m)-high relief of King named the Stone of Hope stands past two other pieces of granite that symbolize
4030-420: Is one in which everybody gets a fair shake and everybody does their fair share, let us not be trapped by what is. We can't be discouraged by what is. We've got to keep pushing for what ought to be, the America we ought to leave to our children, mindful that the hardships we face are nothing compared to those Dr. King and his fellow marchers faced 50 years ago, and that if we maintain our faith, in ourselves and in
Martin Luther King Jr. - Misplaced Pages Continue
4160-755: Is the first memorial to an African American on or near the National Mall. The memorial is not the first to honor a non-United States president on or near the National Mall, as it was preceded by three other such memorials: the John Paul Jones Memorial , erected in 1912 near the Tidal Basin in memory of John Paul Jones , the Scottish-born American naval hero who served during the American Revolution ;
4290-800: Is to pay an onerous fee to the King family." Joseph Lowery , past president of the King-founded Southern Christian Leadership Conference stated in The Washington Post , "If nobody's going to make money off of it, why should anyone get a fee?" Cambridge University historian David Garrow , who won a Pulitzer Prize for Bearing the Cross , his biography of King, said of King's family's behavior, "One would think any family would be so thrilled to have their forefather celebrated and memorialized in D.C. that it would never dawn on them to ask for
4420-456: The 2011 Virginia earthquake damaged the Cathedral on August 23. Although the dedication ceremony did not take place on August 28, the memorial officially became a United States national park on that day. The National Park Service has administered the memorial since it opened, and assumes responsibility for the memorial's operation and maintenance. On August 28, Bob Vogel, superintendent of
4550-503: The Atlanta sit-ins from March 1960 onwards. In August the movement asked King to participate in a mass October sit-in, timed to highlight how 1960's Presidential election campaigns had ignored civil rights. The coordinated day of action took place on October 19. King participated in a sit-in at the restaurant inside Rich's , Atlanta's largest department store, and was among the many arrested that day. The authorities released everyone over
4680-563: The Bible . Martin Jr.'s father regularly used whippings to discipline his children, sometimes having them whip each other. Martin Sr. later remarked, "[Martin Jr.] was the most peculiar child whenever you whipped him. He'd stand there, and the tears would run down, and he'd never cry." Once, when Martin Jr. witnessed his brother A.D. emotionally upset his sister Christine, he took a telephone and knocked A.D. unconscious with it. When Martin Jr. and his brother were playing at their home, A.D. slid from
4810-687: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the 1965 Voting Rights Act . The SCLC used tactics of nonviolent protest with great success by strategically choosing the methods and places in which protests were carried out. There were often dramatic stand-offs with segregationist authorities, who sometimes turned violent. On September 20, 1958, King was signing copies of his book Stride Toward Freedom in Blumstein's department store in Harlem when Izola Curry —a mentally ill black woman who thought that King
4940-701: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 , the Voting Rights Act of 1965 , and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 . There were several dramatic standoffs with segregationist authorities, who often responded violently. King was jailed several times. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director J. Edgar Hoover considered King a radical and made him an object of the FBI's COINTELPRO from 1963 forward. FBI agents investigated him for possible communist ties, spied on his personal life, and secretly recorded him. In 1964,
5070-941: The John Ericsson Memorial , authorized in 1916 to honor John Ericsson , the Swedish-born engineer and inventor who designed the USS ; Monitor during the Civil War; and the George Mason Memorial , authorized in 1990 to honor George Mason , author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights (the basis for the U.S. Constitution's Bill of Rights ), near the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Fourteen quotes from King's speeches, sermons, and writings are inscribed on
5200-430: The Lincoln Memorial to the northwest and the Jefferson Memorial to the southeast. The official address of the monument, 1964 Independence Avenue , S.W., commemorates the Civil Rights Act of 1964 . A ceremony dedicating the memorial was scheduled for Sunday, August 28, 2011, the 48th anniversary of the " I Have a Dream " speech that Martin Luther King Jr. delivered from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963 but
5330-518: The National Mall and Memorial Parks unit of the National Park Service proclaimed: From World War II to Vietnam Veterans, from Lincoln to Jefferson and now to King, the memorials and monuments along the National Mall are where millions of visitors every year learn about our history. The National Park Service is honored to serve as the keeper of America's story, and with this new memorial, to have this incredible venue from which to share
Martin Luther King Jr. - Misplaced Pages Continue
5460-543: The National Park Service (NPS). Martin Luther King Jr. (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968), an American clergyman , activist, and prominent leader in the Civil Rights Movement , was an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, and advocated for using nonviolent resistance, inspired by Mahatma Gandhi . Although during his life he
5590-643: The Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other nonviolent means. At the time of his death, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and stopping the Vietnam War . King was backing the Memphis sanitation strike and organizing a mass occupation of Washington, D.C. – the Poor People's Campaign – when he
5720-507: The Poor People's Campaign , when he was assassinated on April 4 in Memphis, Tennessee . James Earl Ray , a fugitive from the Missouri State Penitentiary , was convicted of the assassination, though the King family believes he was a scapegoat ; the assassination remains the subject of conspiracy theories . King's death was followed by national mourning , as well as anger leading to riots in many U.S. cities . King
5850-492: The tobacco farm of Cullman Brothers Tobacco. This was King's first trip into the integrated north. In a June 1944 letter to his father King wrote about the differences that struck him: "On our way here we saw some things I had never anticipated to see. After we passed Washington there was no discrimination at all. The white people here are very nice. We go to any place we want to and sit anywhere we want to." The farm had partnered with Morehouse College to allot their wages towards
5980-412: The "isness" of today. He kept pushing towards the "oughtness" of tomorrow. And so, as we think about all the work that we must do – rebuilding an economy that can compete on a global stage, and fixing our schools so that every child – not just some, but every child – gets a world-class education, and making sure that our health care system is affordable and accessible to all, and that our economic system
6110-736: The "mountain of despair." Pale pink granite was used to create the Stone of Hope to ensure that the carving's details would be visible at night, and to contrast with the Mountain of Despair. Visitors figuratively "pass through" the Mountain of Despair on the way to the Stone of Hope , symbolically "moving through the struggle as Dr. King did during his life." Stone of Hope is carved out of granite from China's Fujian Province . A 450 feet (140 m)-long inscription wall includes excerpts from many of King's sermons and speeches. On this crescent-shaped granite wall, fourteen of King's quotes are inscribed,
6240-559: The Albany effort proved a key lesson in tactics for King and the national civil rights movement, the national media was highly critical of King's role in the defeat, and the SCLC's lack of results contributed to a growing gulf between the organization and the more radical SNCC . After Albany, King sought to choose engagements for the SCLC in which he could control the circumstances, rather than entering into pre-existing situations. In April 1963,
6370-471: The Associated Press revealed that the King family had negotiated an $ 800,000 licensing deal (equivalent to $ 1,136,000 in 2023) with the foundation for the use of King's words and image in fundraising materials for the memorial. Further delay was encountered in 2008, due to a disagreement between the three federal agencies that must approve the memorial. The memorial design that was approved by
6500-598: The CFA and the NCPC was not approved by the NPS, due to security concerns. The NPS insisted upon the inclusion of a barrier that would prevent a vehicle from crashing into the memorial area. However, when the original design was submitted to the other two agencies, including such a barrier, the CFA and the NCPC rejected the barrier as being restrictive in nature, which would run counter to King's philosophy of freedom and openness. Eventually,
6630-488: The FBI mailed King a threatening anonymous letter , which he interpreted as an attempt to make him commit suicide . On October 14, 1964 , King won the Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance. In his final years, he expanded his focus to include opposition towards poverty and the Vietnam War . In 1968, King was planning a national occupation of Washington, D.C., to be called
SECTION 50
#17327797119226760-412: The FBI used the incidental details caught on tape over the next five years, as part of its COINTELPRO program, in attempts to force King out of his leadership position. King believed that organized, nonviolent protest against the system of southern segregation known as Jim Crow laws would lead to extensive media coverage of the struggle for black equality. Journalistic accounts and televised footage of
6890-482: The Gandhi Society produced a document that called on President Kennedy to issue an executive order to deliver a blow for civil rights as a kind of Second Emancipation Proclamation . Kennedy did not execute the order. The FBI , under written directive from Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy , began tapping King's telephone line in the fall of 1963. Kennedy was concerned that public allegations of communists in
7020-401: The Inscription Wall, each side of the Stone of Hope includes an additional statement attributed to King. The first, from the "I Have a Dream" speech, is "Out of the Mountain of Despair, a Stone of Hope" – the quotation that serves as the basis for the monument's design. The words on the other side of the stone used to read, "I Was a Drum Major for Justice, Peace, and Righteousness", which
7150-401: The Inscription Wall. The "Council of Historians" created to choose the quotations included Maya Angelou , Lerone Bennett , Clayborne Carson , Henry Louis Gates , Marianne Williamson and others, though the memorial's executive architect stated that Maya Angelou did not attend the meetings at which the quotations were selected. According to the official National Park Service brochure for
7280-586: The Interior to permit Alpha Phi Alpha to establish a memorial on Department of Interior lands in the District of Columbia, giving the fraternity until 2003 to raise $ 100 million and break ground. In 1998, Congress authorized the fraternity to establish a nonprofit foundation – the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc. – to manage
7410-584: The Jews, toward colored people, or toward subject races in any part of the world." After returning home in August 1934, Michael Sr. changed his name to Martin Luther King Sr. and his five-year-old son's name to Martin Luther King Jr. At his childhood home, Martin King Jr. and his two siblings read aloud the Bible as instructed by their father. After dinners, Martin Jr.'s grandmother Jennie, whom he affectionately referred to as "Mama", told lively stories from
7540-563: The Memorial, the inscriptions that were chosen "stress four primary messages of Dr. King: justice, democracy, hope, and love." The earliest quote is from 1956, spoken during the time of the Montgomery bus boycott , and the latest is from a sermon King delivered at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., four days before he was assassinated. The quotes are not arranged in chronological order, so that no visitor must follow
7670-585: The Negro race". For a time, he was interested in Walter Rauschenbusch 's "social gospel". In his third year at Crozer, King became romantically involved with the white daughter of an immigrant German woman who worked in the cafeteria. King planned to marry her, but friends, as well as King's father, advised against it, saying that an interracial marriage would provoke animosity from both blacks and whites, potentially damaging his chances of ever pastoring
7800-531: The Rock performed. At the ceremony, President Obama's keynote address included the following remarks: Our work is not done. And so on this day, in which we celebrate a man and a movement that did so much for this country, let us draw strength from those earlier struggles. First and foremost, let us remember that change has never been quick. Change has never been simple, or without controversy. Change depends on persistence. Change requires determination. It took
7930-543: The SCLC began a campaign against racial segregation and economic injustice in Birmingham, Alabama . The campaign used nonviolent but intentionally confrontational tactics, developed in part by Wyatt Tee Walker . Black people in Birmingham, organizing with the SCLC, occupied public spaces with marches and sit-ins , openly violating laws that they considered unjust. King's intent was to provoke mass arrests and "create
SECTION 60
#17327797119228060-424: The SCLC in the libel case Abernathy et al. v. Sullivan ; the case was litigated about the newspaper advertisement " Heed Their Rising Voices ". Wachtel founded a tax-exempt fund to cover the suit's expenses and assist the nonviolent civil rights movement through a more effective means of fundraising. King served as honorary president of this organization, named the "Gandhi Society for Human Rights". In 1962, King and
8190-403: The SCLC would derail the administration's civil rights initiatives. He warned King to discontinue these associations and later felt compelled to issue the written directive that authorized the FBI to wiretap King and other SCLC leaders. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover feared the civil rights movement and investigated the allegations of communist infiltration. When no evidence emerged to support this,
8320-485: The SCLC, he led the unsuccessful Albany Movement in Albany, Georgia , and helped organize some of the nonviolent 1963 protests in Birmingham, Alabama . King was one of the leaders of the 1963 March on Washington , where he delivered his " I Have a Dream " speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial , and helped organize two of the three Selma to Montgomery marches during the 1965 Selma voting rights movement. The civil rights movement achieved pivotal legislative gains in
8450-428: The SCLC. In some cases, bystanders attacked the police, who responded with force. King and the SCLC were criticized for putting children in harm's way. But the campaign was a success: Connor lost his job, the "Jim Crow" signs came down, and public places became more open to blacks. King's reputation improved immensely. King was arrested and jailed early in the campaign—his 13th arrest out of 29. From his cell, he composed
8580-452: The United States Congress. In October 2009, the memorial's final project was approved by federal agencies and a building permit was issued. Construction began in December 2009 and was expected to take 20 months to complete. The foundation conducted a press tour on December 1, 2010, as the "Stone of Hope" was nearing completion. At that time only $ 108 million of the $ 120 million project cost had been raised. The street address for
8710-564: The age of 25 in 1954, King was called as pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama . King received his PhD on June 5, 1955, with a dissertation (initially supervised by Edgar S. Brightman and, upon the latter's death, by Lotan Harold DeWolf ) titled A Comparison of the Conceptions of God in the Thinking of Paul Tillich and Henry Nelson Wieman . An academic inquiry in October 1991 concluded that portions of his doctoral dissertation had been plagiarized and he had acted improperly. However, "[d]espite its finding,
8840-438: The anniversary of King's death. This memorial is not the first in Washington, D.C., to honor an African American, as it was preceded by a memorial to Mary McLeod Bethune , founder of the National Council of Negro Women , who also served as an unofficial advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. A 17 feet (5.2 m)-tall bronze statue of her is located in Lincoln Park , East Capitol St. and 12th St., NE. The King Memorial
8970-421: The audience was hostile and frustrated. King then gave an impassioned speech calling participants to resist the "cancerous disease of disunity", helping to calm tensions. The Albany Movement was a desegregation coalition formed in Albany, Georgia , in November 1961. In December, King and the SCLC became involved. The movement mobilized thousands of citizens for a nonviolent attack on every aspect of segregation in
9100-412: The bus boycott transformed him into a national figure and the best-known spokesman of the civil rights movement. In 1957, King, Ralph Abernathy , Fred Shuttlesworth , Joseph Lowery , and other civil rights activists founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). The group was created to harness the moral authority and organizing power of black churches to conduct nonviolent protests in
9230-499: The church sent King Sr. on a multinational trip; one of the stops on the trip was Berlin for the Congress of the Baptist World Alliance [BWA]). He also visited sites in Germany that are associated with the Reformation leader Martin Luther . In reaction to the rise of Nazism , the BWA made a resolution saying, "This Congress deplores and condemns as a violation of the law of God the Heavenly Father , all racial animosity, and every form of oppression or unfair discrimination toward
9360-598: The church's pastor, King became known for his oratorical preaching in Montgomery and the surrounding region. In March 1955, Claudette Colvin —a fifteen-year-old black schoolgirl in Montgomery—refused to give up her bus seat to a white man in violation of Jim Crow laws , local laws in the Southern United States that enforced racial segregation . Nine months later on December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks
9490-474: The city and attracted nationwide attention. When King first visited on December 15, 1961, he "had planned to stay a day or so and return home after giving counsel." The following day he was swept up in a mass arrest of peaceful demonstrators, and he declined bail until the city made concessions. According to King, "that agreement was dishonored and violated by the city" after he left. King returned in July 1962 and
9620-523: The college's president, Baptist minister Benjamin Mays , with being his "spiritual mentor". King had concluded that the church offered the most assuring way to answer "an inner urge to serve humanity", and he made peace with the Baptist Church, as he believed he would be a "rational" minister with sermons that were "a respectful force for ideas, even social protest." King graduated from Morehouse with
9750-561: The committee said that 'no thought should be given to the revocation of Dr. King's doctoral degree,' an action that the panel said would serve no purpose." The committee found that the dissertation still "makes an intelligent contribution to scholarship." A letter is now attached to the copy of King's dissertation in the university library, noting that numerous passages were included without the appropriate quotations and citations of sources. Significant debate exists on how to interpret King's plagiarism. While studying at Boston University, he asked
9880-500: The country, Dr. King didn't say those laws were a failure; he didn't say this is too hard; he didn't say, let's settle for what we got and go home. Instead he said, let's take those victories and broaden our mission to achieve not just civil and political equality but also economic justice; let's fight for a living wage and better schools and jobs for all who are willing to work. In other words, when met with hardship, when confronting disappointment, Dr. King refused to accept what he called
10010-409: The courage of one man and the struggle for civil rights that he led. The rescheduled dedication on October 16 was a smaller affair than the one that organizers had planned for August 28. President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama , Vice President Joe Biden , Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi , Congressman John Lewis , Congressman Elijah Cummings and former Congressman Walter E. Fauntroy were among
10140-554: The daily indignities suffered by southern blacks, and of segregationist violence and harassment of civil rights supporters, produced a wave of sympathetic public opinion that convinced the majority of Americans that the civil rights movement was the most important issue in American politics in the early 1960s. King organized and led marches for blacks' right to vote , desegregation , labor rights , and other basic civil rights. Most of these rights were successfully enacted into law with
10270-725: The dedication. In addition to the August 28 ceremony and concerts, an interfaith prayer service was scheduled to take place at the Washington National Cathedral on August 27, as well as a day-long youth event and gala/pre-dedication dinner at the Washington D.C. Convention Center , also on the 27th. However, the prayer service was moved to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in northeast Washington after
10400-412: The design and construction of the memorial include: The memorial opened to visitors before its planned dedication, with visiting hours on August 22–25, 2011. The official dedication was initially scheduled to have taken place at 11 am Sunday August 28. The dedication was to follow a pre-dedication concert at 10 am. A post-dedication concert was scheduled for 2 pm. However, on August 25,
10530-466: The earliest from the time of the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott in Alabama , and the latest from his final sermon, delivered in 1968 at Washington, D.C.'s National Cathedral, just four days before his assassination . The relief of King is intended to give the impression that he is looking over the Tidal Basin toward the horizon, and that the cherry trees that adorn the site will bloom every year during
10660-407: The event's organizers postponed most Saturday and Sunday activities because of safety concerns related to Hurricane Irene , which was expected to impact the Washington area during the weekend. The organizers subsequently rescheduled the dedication to October 16, 2011, the 16th anniversary of the 1995 Million Man March on the National Mall. Before the event's postponement, President Barack Obama
10790-595: The family to a two-story brick home on a hill overlooking downtown Atlanta. As an adolescent, he initially felt resentment against whites due to the "racial humiliation" that he, his family, and his neighbors often had to endure. In 1942, when King was 13, he became the youngest assistant manager of a newspaper delivery station for the Atlanta Journal . In the same year, King skipped the ninth grade and enrolled in Booker T. Washington High School , where he maintained
10920-509: The final selection was done by a mostly African American design team and was based solely on artistic ability. Gilbert Young , an artist known for a work of art entitled He Ain't Heavy , led a protest against the decision to hire Lei by launching the website "King Is Ours", which demanded that an African American artist be used for the monument. Human-rights activist and arts advocate Ann Lau and American stone-carver Clint Button joined Young and national talk-show host Joe Madison in advancing
11050-545: The foundation gave written promises that it would use local stonemasons to assemble the memorial. However, when construction began in October, it appeared that only Chinese laborers would be used. An investigator working for the Washington area local of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers was reportedly told that the Chinese workers did not know what they would be paid for their work on
11180-543: The fraternity's 50th anniversary banquet in 1956. Following King's assassination in 1968, Alpha Phi Alpha proposed erecting a permanent memorial to King in Washington, D.C. in his honour. The fraternity's efforts gained momentum in 1986, the first year King's birthday was celebrated as the federal holiday of Martin Luther King Jr. Day . In 1996, the United States Congress authorized the Secretary of
11310-482: The idea of achieving human dignity through global relationships of well being has served to instill a broader and deeper sense of duty within each of us – a duty to be both responsible citizens and conscientious stewards of freedom and democracy. Harry E. Johnson , the President and Chief Executive Officer of the memorial foundation, added these words in a letter posted on the memorial's website: The King Memorial
11440-613: The lawn of her parents' house, in Heiberger, Alabama . They had four children: Yolanda King (1955–2007), Martin Luther King III (b. 1957), Dexter Scott King (1961–2024), and Bernice King (b. 1963). King limited Coretta's role in the civil rights movement, expecting her to be a housewife and mother. The Dexter Avenue Baptist Church was influential in the Montgomery African-American community. As
11570-472: The memorial and that they expected to be paid when they returned home. The memorial's design team visited China in October 2006 to inspect potential granite to be used. The project's foundation has argued that only China could provide granite of that hue in sufficient quantity. Some questioned why such white granite would be used to portray a black man. Young's "King Is Ours" petition demanded that an African American artist and American granite be used for
11700-598: The memorial is 1964 Independence Avenue SW in Washington, D.C. The address "1964" was chosen as a direct reference to the 1964 Civil Rights Act , a milestone in the Civil Rights Movement in which King played an important role. The memorial is located on a 4-acre (1.6 ha) site in West Potomac Park that borders the Tidal Basin , southwest of the National Mall. The memorial is near the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and
11830-595: The memorial's fundraising and design, and approved the building of the memorial on the National Mall. In 1999, the United States Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) and the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) approved the site location for the memorial. The memorial's design, by ROMA Design Group , a San Francisco -based architecture firm, was selected out of 900 candidates from 52 countries. On December 4, 2000,
11960-511: The more than 10,000 people who attended the event, which occurred on a temperate day. Obama gave a keynote address that linked the Civil Rights Movement to his own political struggles during the late-2000s recession . Jesse Jackson , Andrew Young , Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III also spoke during the ceremony. Aretha Franklin , Stevie Wonder , Sheryl Crow , James Taylor , Jennifer Holliday and Sweet Honey in
12090-507: The mountain of despair, a stone of hope." The memorial opened to the public on August 22, 2011, after more than two decades of planning, fundraising, and construction. This national memorial is the 395th unit in the United States National Park Service . The monumental memorial is located at the northwest corner of the Tidal Basin near the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial , on a sightline linking
12220-601: The national monument, arguing the importance of such selections as a part of the memorial's legacy. The petition received support from American granite workers and from the California State Conference of the NAACP . In May 2008, the Commission of Fine Arts , one of the agencies which had to approve all elements of the memorial, raised concerns about "the colossal scale and Social Realist style of
12350-430: The negotiations failed and sit-ins and boycotts resumed for several months. On March 7, 1961, a group of Black elders including King notified student leaders that a deal had been reached: the city's lunch counters would desegregate in fall 1961, in conjunction with the court-mandated desegregation of schools. Many students were disappointed at the compromise. In a large meeting on March 10 at Warren Memorial Methodist Church,
12480-496: The next few days, except for King. Invoking his probationary plea deal, judge J. Oscar Mitchell sentenced King on October 25 to four months of hard labor. Before dawn the next day, King was transported to Georgia State Prison . The arrest and harsh sentence drew nationwide attention. Many feared for King's safety, as he started a prison sentence with people convicted of violent crimes, many of them White and hostile to his activism. Both Presidential candidates were asked to weigh in, at
12610-483: The nickname "Tweed" or "Tweedie" among his friends. He liked flirting with girls and dancing. His brother A.D. later remarked, "He kept flitting from chick to chick, and I decided I couldn't keep up with him. Especially since he was crazy about dances, and just about the best jitterbug in town." On April 13, 1944, in his junior year , King gave his first public speech during an oratorical contest . In his speech he stated, "black America still wears chains. The finest negro
12740-409: The now-famous " Letter from Birmingham Jail " that responds to calls to pursue legal channels for social change . The letter has been described as "one of the most important historical documents penned by a modern political prisoner ". King argues that the crisis of racism is too urgent, and the current system too entrenched: "We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by
12870-602: The oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed." He points out that the Boston Tea Party , a celebrated act of rebellion in the American colonies, was illegal civil disobedience, and that, conversely, "everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was 'legal'." Walter Reuther , president of the United Auto Workers , arranged for $ 160,000 to bail out King and his fellow protestors. "I have almost reached
13000-473: The personal request of Sargent Shriver , called King's wife to offer his help. The pressure from Kennedy and others proved effective, and King was released two days later. King's father decided to openly endorse Kennedy's candidacy for the November 8 election which he narrowly won. After the October 19 sit-ins and following unrest, a 30-day truce was declared in Atlanta for desegregation negotiations. However,
13130-449: The possibilities of this nation, there is no challenge we cannot surmount. In 2001, the foundation's efforts to build the memorial were stalled because Intellectual Properties Management Inc., an organization operated by King's family, wanted the foundation to pay licensing fees to use his name and likeness in marketing campaigns. The memorial's foundation, beset by delays and a languid pace of donations, stated that "the last thing it needs
13260-463: The proposed sculpture", noting that it "recalls a genre of political sculpture that has recently been pulled down in other countries." The Commission did, however, approve the final design in September 2008. New York Times art critic Edward Rothstein was among those who criticized the Stone of Hope ' s depiction of King as overly "stern" and not the proper depiction of a man famous for
13390-561: The protest when the use of Chinese granite was discovered. Lau decried the human rights record of the Chinese government and asserted that the granite would be mined by workers forced to toil in unsafe and unfair conditions, unlike that used in the National World War II Memorial , for example. Button argued that the $ 10 million in federal money that has been authorized for the King project required it to be subject to an open bidding process. In September 2010,
13520-629: The regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Councilor or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set
13650-532: The request of the SCLC. In Atlanta, King served until his death as co-pastor with his father at the Ebenezer Baptist Church . Georgia governor Ernest Vandiver expressed open hostility towards King's return. He claimed that "wherever M. L. King Jr., has been there has followed in his wake a wave of crimes", and vowed to keep King under surveillance. On May 4, 1960, King drove writer Lillian Smith to Emory University when police stopped them. King
13780-409: The rest of the way to Atlanta. Later King wrote of the incident: "That night will never leave my memory. It was the angriest I have ever been in my life." During King's junior year in high school, Morehouse College —an all-male historically black college that King's father and maternal grandfather had attended—began accepting high school juniors who passed the entrance examination . As World War II
13910-482: The service of civil rights reform. The group was inspired by the crusades of evangelist Billy Graham , who befriended King, as well as the national organizing of the group In Friendship, founded by King allies Stanley Levison and Ella Baker . King led the SCLC until his death. The SCLC's 1957 Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom was the first time King addressed a national audience. Harry Wachtel joined King's legal advisor Clarence B. Jones in defending four ministers of
14040-552: The situation became so tense that King's house was bombed. King was arrested for traveling 30 mph in a 25 mph zone and jailed, which overnight drew the attention of national media, and greatly increased King's public stature. The controversy ended when the United States District Court issued a ruling in Browder v. Gayle that prohibited racial segregation on Montgomery public buses. King's role in
14170-416: The store with Martin Jr. He told Martin Jr. afterward, "I don't care how long I have to live with this system, I will never accept it." In 1936, Martin Sr. led hundreds of African Americans in a civil rights march to the city hall in Atlanta, to protest voting rights discrimination. Martin Jr. later remarked that Martin Sr. was "a real father" to him. Martin King Jr. memorized hymns and Bible verses by
14300-539: The time he was five years old. Beginning at six years old, he attended church events with his mother and sang hymns while she played piano. His favorite hymn was "I Want to Be More and More Like Jesus"; his singing moved attendees. King later became a member of the junior choir in his church. He enjoyed opera, and played the piano. King garnered a large vocabulary from reading dictionaries. He got into physical altercations with boys in his neighborhood, but oftentimes used his knowledge of words to stop or avoid fights. King showed
14430-692: The timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season." Baptist Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.226 via cp1108 cp1108, Varnish XID 220209560 Upstream caches: cp1108 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 07:41:52 GMT Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial
14560-501: The university's tuition, housing, and fees. On weekdays King and the other students worked in the fields, picking tobacco from 7:00am to at least 5:00pm, enduring temperatures above 100 °F , to earn roughly USD$ 4 per day. On Friday evenings, the students visited downtown Simsbury to get milkshakes and watch movies, and on Saturdays they would travel to Hartford, Connecticut , to see theatre performances, shop and eat in restaurants. On Sundays they attended church services in Hartford, at
14690-545: The use of nonviolent resistance and nonviolent civil disobedience against Jim Crow laws and other forms of legalized discrimination . A black church leader, King participated in and led marches for the right to vote , desegregation , labor rights , and other civil rights . He oversaw the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott and later became the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). As president of
14820-522: Was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee , on April 4, 1968. The official vision statement for the King Memorial notes: Dr. King championed a movement that draws fully from the deep well of America's potential for freedom, opportunity, and justice. His vision of America is captured in his message of hope and possibility for a future anchored in dignity, sensitivity, and mutual respect; a message that challenges each of us to recognize that America's true strength lies in its diversity of talents. The vision of
14950-476: Was monitored by the FBI for presumed communist sympathies, King is now presented as a heroic leader in the history of modern American liberalism . At the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom , King imagined an end to racial inequality in his " I Have a Dream " speech. This speech has been canonized as one of the greatest pieces of American oratory . In 1964, King became the youngest person to receive
15080-425: Was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a city bus. The two incidents led to the Montgomery bus boycott, which was urged and planned by Edgar Nixon and led by King. The other ministers asked him to take a leadership role because his relative newness to community leadership made it easier for him to speak out. King was hesitant but decided to do so if no one else wanted it. The boycott lasted for 385 days, and
15210-463: Was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta ; he was the second of three children born to Michael King Sr. and Alberta King ( née Williams ). Alberta's father, Adam Daniel Williams, was a minister in rural Georgia , moved to Atlanta in 1893, and became pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in the following year. Williams married Jennie Celeste Parks. Michael Sr. was born to sharecroppers James Albert and Delia King of Stockbridge, Georgia ; he
15340-462: Was born. Michael Jr. had an older sister, Christine King Farris , and a younger brother, Alfred Daniel "A. D." King . Shortly after marrying Alberta, Michael King Sr. became assistant pastor of the Ebenezer church. Senior pastor Williams died in the spring of 1931 and that fall Michael Sr. took the role. With support from his wife, he raised attendance from six hundred to several thousand. In 1934,
15470-501: Was cited for "driving without a license" because he had not yet been issued a Georgia license. King's Alabama license was still valid, and Georgia law did not mandate any time limit for issuing a local license. King paid a fine but was unaware that his lawyer agreed to a plea deal that included probation . Meanwhile, the Atlanta Student Movement had been acting to desegregate businesses and public spaces, organizing
15600-516: Was conspiring against her with communists—stabbed him in the chest with a letter opener, which nearly impinged on the aorta. King received first aid by police officers Al Howard and Philip Romano. King underwent emergency surgery by Aubre de Lambert Maynard , Emil Naclerio and John W. V. Cordice ; he remained hospitalized for several weeks. Curry was later found mentally incompetent to stand trial. In December 1959, after being based in Montgomery for five years, King announced his return to Atlanta at
15730-512: Was criticized by human rights activist Harry Wu on the grounds that Lei had previously sculpted Mao Zedong . It also stirred accusations that it was based on financial considerations, because the Chinese government would make a $ 25 million donation to help meet the projected shortfall in donations. The president of the memorial's foundation, Harry E. Johnson , who first met Lei in a sculpting workshop in Saint Paul, Minnesota , stated that
15860-408: Was expected to deliver remarks at the dedication ceremony. Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder were scheduled to perform. Many other individuals were also expected to participate in the event, including members of the King family; civil rights leaders John Lewis , Jesse Jackson , and Andrew Young ; actor Jamie Foxx ; and filmmaker George Lucas . As many as 250,000 people were predicted to attend
15990-446: Was given the option of forty-five days in jail or a $ 178 fine (equivalent to $ 1,800 in 2023); he chose jail. Three days into his sentence, Police Chief Laurie Pritchett discreetly arranged for King's fine to be paid and ordered his release. "We had witnessed persons being kicked off lunch counter stools ... ejected from churches ... and thrown into jail ... But for the first time, we witnessed being kicked out of jail." It
16120-523: Was his Christian duty to love everyone. Martin King Jr. witnessed his father stand up against segregation and discrimination . Once, when stopped by a police officer who referred to Martin Sr. as "boy", Martin Sr. responded sharply that Martin Jr. was a boy but he was a man. When Martin Jr's father took him into a shoe store in downtown Atlanta, the clerk told them they needed to sit in the back. Martin Sr. refused asserting "we'll either buy shoes sitting here or we won't buy any shoes at all", before leaving
16250-498: Was later acknowledged by the King Center that Billy Graham was the one who bailed King out. After nearly a year of intense activism with few tangible results, the movement began to deteriorate. King requested a halt to all demonstrations and a "Day of Penance" to promote nonviolence and maintain the moral high ground. Divisions within the black community and the canny, low-key response by local government defeated efforts. Though
16380-486: Was of African- Irish descent. As an adolescent, Michael Sr. left his parents' farm and walked to Atlanta, where he attained a high school education, and enrolled in Morehouse College to study for entry to the ministry. Michael Sr. and Alberta began dating in 1920, and married on November 25, 1926. Until Jennie's death in 1941, their home was on the second floor of Alberta's parents' Victorian house , where King
16510-627: Was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2003. Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established as a holiday in cities and states throughout the United States beginning in 1971; the federal holiday was first observed in 1986. The Martin Luther King ;Jr. Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was dedicated in 2011. Michael King Jr.
16640-479: Was postponed until October 16 (the 16th anniversary of the 1995 Million Man March on the National Mall) due to Hurricane Irene . Although this is not the first memorial to an African American in Washington, D.C., King is the first African American honored with a memorial on or near the National Mall and only the fourth non-President to be memorialized in such a way. The King Memorial is administered by
16770-532: Was revealed). The fourteen quotes on the Inscription Wall are: Some of King's words reflected in these quotations are based on other sources, including the Bible, and in one case – "the arc of the moral universe" quote – paraphrases the words of Theodore Parker , an abolitionist and Unitarian minister, who died shortly before the beginning of the Civil War . In addition to the fourteen quotations on
16900-487: Was underway many black college students had been enlisted, so the university aimed to increase their enrollment by allowing juniors to apply. In 1944, aged 15, King passed the examination and was enrolled at the university that autumn. In the summer before King started at Morehouse, he boarded a train with his friend—Emmett "Weasel" Proctor—and a group of other Morehouse College students to work in Simsbury, Connecticut , at
#921078