Who Was Martin Luther King Jr.?
Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15, 1929 into a family of pastors–both his father and his grandfather served as pastors for many years. King came of age in a time where blacks and whites were separated in much of the U.S. The two groups were unable to attend the same schools, drink from the same water fountains, or eat in the same restaurants. King himself attended segregated public elementary and high schools. He also went to an all-black college in Atlanta, Morehouse, from which he graduated in 1948. King saw his calling in the family business, going on to attain graduate degrees at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania and Boston University, where he received a doctorate in Systematic Theology in 1955. This schooling set him up to lead a church, but his beliefs and determination–and, certainly, his circumstances–propelled him to do even more. After marrying a woman named Coretta Scott, whom he met while in graduate school in Boston, King moved
He was a man who led people in peaceful marches. He was a man who gave us freedom. He was a civil right leader who worked with Rosa Parks. He was a man who was a minister. When Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and put in jail he said, Ive been in fifteen jails, but this is the first time that I have been treated like a hog. He was arrested because he and his fellow marchers were trying to go to St. Augustine, Florida so he could demonstrate for civil rights.
