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Martin Luther King : A great
man
King was an American clergyman, Nobel Peace
Prize winner and one of the principal leaders of
the United States civil rights movement.
King was born on 15 January 1929 in Atlanta,
Georgia. His father was a Baptist minister, his
mother a schoolteacher. Originally named
Michael, he was later renamed Martin. He entered
Morehouse College in 1944 and then went to
Crozer Religious Seminary to undertake
postgraduate study, receiving his doctorate in
1955.
Who was Martin Luther King ?
Returning to the South to become pastor of a
Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, King
first achieved national renown when he helped
mobilise the black boycott of the Montgomery
bus system in 1955. This was organised after
Rosa Parks, an African-American seamstress,
left work and boarded a bus for home.
As the bus became crowded, the bus driver
ordered Parks to give up her seat to a white
passenger. Montgomery's buses were
segregated, with the seats in the front
reserved for "whites only." Blacks had to sit at
the back of the bus.
King’s mobilisation for Rosa Parks
But if the bus was crowded and all the
"whites only" seats were filled, black
people were expected to give up their
seats—a black person sitting while a
white person stood would never be
tolerated in the racist South.
Rosa had had enough of such
humiliation, and refused to give up her
seat. "I felt I had a right to stay
where I was" she said. "I wanted this
particular driver to know that we
were being treated unfairly as
individuals and as a people." The bus
driver had her arrested.
Martin Luther King, Jr., heard about
Parks's brave defiance and launched a 382-
day boycott of Montgomery buses.. The
17,000 black residents of Montgomery
pulled together and kept the boycott going
for more than a year. Finally, the Supreme
Court intervened and declared segregation
on buses unconstitutional. Rosa Parks and
the boycotters defeated the racist system,
and she became known as "the mother of
the civil rights movement."
She wasn't the only leader of the civil rights
movement, though. Martin Luther King
was known by the way in which he led the
movement.
King advocated civil
disobedience, the non-violent
resistance against unjust laws:
"Non-violence is a powerful and
just weapon which cuts without
wounding and ennobles the man
who wields it."Civil rights activists organized
demonstrations, marches,
boycotts, strikes, and voter-
registration drives, and refused
to obey laws that they knew
were wrong and unjust.
King’s peaceful marches for civil rights
These peaceful forms of protest were often met with vicious threats,
arrests, beatings, and worse. King emphasized how important it was
that the civil rights movement did not sink to the level of the racists
and hate mongers they fought against: "Let us not seek to satisfy
our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness
and hatred," he urged. "We must forever conduct our struggle
on the high plane of dignity and discipline ». King's philosophy of
"tough-mindedness and tenderheartedness" was not only highly
effective, but it gave the civil rights movement an inspiring moral
authority and grace.
In 1963, King led mass protests against discriminatory practices in
Birmingham, Alabama where the white population were violently
resisting desegregation. The city was dubbed 'Bombingham' as attacks
against civil rights protesters increased, and King was arrested and jailed
for his part in the protests.After his release, King participated in the enormous civil rights march
on Washington in August 1963, and delivered his famous « I have a
dream »speech, predicting a day when the promise of freedom and
equality for all would become a reality in America. In 1964, he was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In 1965, he led a campaign to register
blacks to vote. The same year the US Congress passed the Voting
Rights Act outlawing the discriminatory practices that had barred
blacks from voting in the south.
Over 250.000 persons gather in washington in August, 1963 urging
support for pending civil rights legislation.
As the civil rights movement became increasingly radicalised,
King found that his message of peaceful protest was not shared
by many in the younger generation. King began to protest
against the Vietnam war and poverty levels in the US.
He was assassinated on 4 April 1968 during a visit to Memphis,
Tennessee.
Martin Luther King’s assassination
At 6:01 p.m. on April 4, 1968, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
was hit by a sniper's bullet. King had been standing on the balcony in
front of his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, when,
without warning, he was shot. The .30-caliber rifle bullet entered King's
right cheek, traveled through his neck, and finally stopped at his shoulder
blade. King was immediately taken to a nearby hospital but was
pronounced dead at 7:05 p.m.
Violence and controversy followed. In outrage of the murder, many
blacks took to the streets across the United States in a massive wave
of riots. The FBI investigated the crime, but many believed them
partially or fully responsible for the assassination. An escaped convict
by the name of James Earl Ray was arrested, but many people,
including some of Martin Luther King Jr.'s own family, believe he was
innocent.
Conclusion : Martin Luther King Jr. was a great man who stood up for what he
believed in. He brought together a nation and helped us see
things in someone else's eyes. He was such a great man and will
always be remembered for what he did.
He took a stand against powerful people when no one else would.
He kept trying once he was doubted and threatened.
Martin Luther King Jr. got people around the world to look past
"black" labeling.
He was one of the greatest liberals that ever
walked this earth. Dr. King is one of the few
true American heroes. In an age where it
has become fashionable to hero-bash-
uncovering the nefarious backgrounds and
destroying the myths of American heroes,
like George Washington and John F.
Kennedy--the name of Dr. King has remains
unblemished, and justifiably so Dr. King
stood for what he believed, and was a man
ahead of his time. In the face of adversity,
he dedicated and sacrificed his life for the
equality of all people.
His dream, which many today still share, has continued to live on as his
legacy. His adversaries took his life, but his heroic legacy will never die.
"Free at last, free at last, thank God almighty we're free at last."
Because he was brave enough to preach his thoughts without fear.
The world was shocked once again by a senseless act of violence in
the United States. One after another, Black people have died in the
long struggle to bring racial justice to the American continent. . To
their number was added Dr Martin Luther King. No other black leader
had such a following among his own people. King's message of non-
violence, his relentlessly courageous pursuit of justice, the wisdom
and tolerance of his appeal, made him a leader throughout the
United States and a respected figure in the world arena. His award of
the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 was justly earned.
King's death robs America of her most vigorous spokesman for
moderation and integration. There is no sign of anyone who can take
his place.
At that time, with his assassination, America has moved one step
nearer to chaos, and one step farther from community.
The impact of King’s death
King’s funeral :
Family members and friends of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., follow his
casket into an Atlanta funeral home after the body arrived from
Memphis, in this April 5, 1968.
President Lyndon B. Johnson declared a national day of mourning for
the lost civil rights leader on April 7.
The family of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. walk in the funeral procession of
the slain civil rights leader, in Atlanta, April 9, 1968.
THE ENDThis work was made by :
Ghita Ouedrhiri
Kenza El hammoumi
Soukayna Remmal
Safae Amahrit
Amine Ait Oulahyane
Khalil Bengebara