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Martin Luther King, Jr. (January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American clergyman, activist, and leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights using nonviolent civil disobedience. King has become a national icon in the history of American progressiveness.

Born Michael King, Jr.
January 15, 1929
Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Died April 4, 1968 (aged 39)
Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Cause of death Assassination
Monuments Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial
Alma mater
  • Morehouse College (B.A.)
  • Crozer Theological Seminary (B.D.)
  • Boston University (Ph.D.)
Occupation Clergyman, activist
Organization Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
Movement African-American Civil Rights Movement, Peace movement
Religion Christianity (Baptist (Progressive National Baptist Convention))
Spouse(s) Coretta Scott King (m. 1953–1968; his death)
Children
  • Yolanda Denise King (1955–2007)
  • Martin Luther King III (b. 1957)
  • Dexter Scott King (b. 1961)
  • Bernice Albertine King (b. 1963)
Parent(s)
  • Martin Luther King, Sr.
  • Alberta Williams King
Awards
  • Nobel Peace Prize (1964)
  • Presidential Medal of Freedom (1977, posthumous)
  • Congressional Gold Medal (2004, posthumous)

Martin Luther King's Speeches

Beyond Vietnam Speech: Why I am Opposed to the War in Vietnam

The war was doing far more than devastating the hopes of the poor at home...We were taking the black young men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem.

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The Nobel Peace Prize 1964

Presentation Speech
Award Ceremony Video
MLA style: "Martin Luther King Jr. - Biography". Nobelprize.org. 25 Jan 2013
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html

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