martin luther king?

Question

what did martin luther king do, and what where his accomplishments.

Answer 1

It is a testament to the enduring legacy left by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that his words and deeds continue to touch the generation of young people who have come to know him exclusively through history books, documentaries and the recollections of older relatives.

For many of these youngsters, Dr. King remains a source of inspiration, a beacon to guide them through the troubled waters of their own times.

On these pages, young people from around the country explain in their own words the profound effect that Dr. King has had on their lives and reveal the personal meaning that the life of this great leader holds for them.


Shirley Shealey, age 12 Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School Atlanta
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has been such an inspiration to me. I thank God for having sent Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to us. He brought Black people together. He taught us that Black and White must learn to work well together if America is to survive. He taught us that in order to pull oneself up by his boot straps, one must first have a boot strap to pull up.

I've learned from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that Blacks must desire a piece of the economic pie. I've learned that situations can be changed through non-violence. For too long, many Black Americans believed that in order to change oppression, violence was the way. But Dr. King taught us that oppressive conditions and the plight of Blacks can be changed through peaceable methods, such as marches, demonstrations and boycotts.

To me, Martin Luther King Jr. means that I have the power to make a difference. It was Martin Luther King Jr. who made me realize I am somebody and that we Black people shall overcome the difficult times someday.

To me, Dr. King is a legend. He was a God-fearing, proud, determined, peaceful and loving man. He was like E.F. Hutton--when he spoke, people listened. He had the kind of charisma only great leaders have.

If Dr. King were here today, he would urge Black people to go back to the old teaching of love thy neighbor as thyself. He would preach that we should do away with violence and replace it with love. He would tell us to keep drugs out of schools, neighborhoods and homes, and replace them with strong minds and the will and determination to succeed.

Alisha Boler, age 16 Hirsch Metropolitan High School Chicago
For many years I have heard about the many great things that Dr. King has done for African-Americans and other put-down races. But never have I been asked to tell what he really means to me.

Dr. King's accomplishments mean a great deal to me all by themselves. They mean that now I can sit down at the counter of a restaurant and eat a meal without being taunted to move. Also, I am able to drink from the same public water fountain as Whites. I can go to a public school with White children without being beaten up. I am also able to go to a movie and enter through the front of the theater. Thus, Dr. King's accomplishments have enabled me to live a freer and more peaceful life. And for that I am thankful.

Dr. King means that now, as a female African-American, I can live the life that my grandparents and their parents couldn't have. I have a chance to survive in a world that so many years ago was unfair to Africa-Americans.

Thanks to Dr. King and other heroes of the civil Rights Movement, I have a chance as an African-American to prove that the color of my skin is not the only significant thing about me. I can express my feelings about the world without being afraid. I can show the world that I possess as much talent as any other person.

I cannot really express my feelings about Dr. King simply. But if he were alive today and I would sit down and talk to him, I would let him know what a great impact his speeches and sermons have had on me and the world.

If he were alive, I'm sure he would continue to tell the world how important it is for us to love each and everyone who walks this earth no matter what the color of his skin may be.

To me, Dr. King means honestly, kindness, caring, loving, forgiveness and equal opportunity for everyone in the world.

An'Tneal Goffney, age 12 Charles Drew Junior High School Los Angeles
No one in America's Civil Rights Movement means more to me than Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. And no one has served as a more inspirational and influential leader that he. Indeed, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a great man.

Dr. King accomplished a lot in his short but courageous life. Many of his accomplishments began at an early age. At age 15, he entered Morehouse College ... and four years later he was a ordained. Imagine, an ordained minister at the age of 19!

Dr. King protested local segregation laws, and he was a leading spokesman for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. He helped established the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and he was instrumental in coordinating civil rights activities in the South.

Truly, Dr. King served humanity in a humble manner. He served humanity in the spirit of love and nonviolence.

Answer 2

Reverend Martin Luther King became the daddy of Martin Luther King, Jr (1929-sixty 8), the civil rights chief who became assassinated in 1968. (Martin Luther King, Jr. became the daddy of Martin Luther King III.)

Answer 3

One of the amusing things Mr M.L. King did was to plagiarise all his most famous speeches, including "I have a dream etc"!

He also plagiarised his doctoral thesis ifrom a fellow student at Boston University.

Boston Universtiy found out and later revoked Kin'gg's phd.

That's why no-one talks about him as "Dr Martin Luther King" any more!

Answer 4

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., graduated from Morehouse College (B.A., 1948), Crozer Theological Seminary (B.D., 1951), and Boston University (Ph.D., 1955). The son of the pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, King was ordained in 1947 and became (1954) minister of a Baptist church in Montgomery, Ala. He led the black boycott (1955-56) of segregated city bus lines and in 1956 gained a major victory and prestige as a civil-rights leader when Montgomery buses began to operate on a desegregated basis.

King organized the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), which gave him a base to pursue further civil-rights activities, first in the South and later nationwide. His philosophy of nonviolent resistance led to his arrest on numerous occasions in the 1950s and 60s. His campaigns had mixed success, but the protest he led in Birmingham, Ala., in 1963 brought him worldwide attention. He spearheaded the Aug., 1963, March on Washington, which brought together more than 200,000 people. In 1964 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

King's leadership in the civil-rights movement was challenged in the mid-1960s as others grew more militant. His interests, however, widened from civil rights to include criticism of the Vietnam War and a deeper concern over poverty. His plans for a Poor People's March to Washington were interrupted (1968) for a trip to Memphis, Tenn., in support of striking sanitation workers. On Apr. 4, 1968, he was shot and killed as he stood on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel (since 1991 a civil-rights museum).

James Earl Ray, a career criminal, pleaded guilty to the murder and was convicted, but he soon recanted, claiming he was duped into his plea. Ray's conviction was subsequently upheld, but he eventually received support from members of King's family, who believed King to have been the victim of a conspiracy. Ray died in prison in 1998. In a jury trial in Memphis in 1999 the King family won a wrongful-death judgment against Loyd Jowers, who claimed (1993) that he had arranged the killing for a Mafia figure. Many experts, however, were unconvinced by the verdict, and in 2000, after an 18-month investigation, the Justice Dept