Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of the
world's best known believers in using non-violent social
change strategies. He was born in Atlanta on January
15, 1929. King's roots were in the African-American
Baptist church, which he saw as an instrument for improving
the lives of African-Americans.
King gained national recognition as a
result of his exceptional skills used within the Montgomery
Improvement Association that formed in 1955. In 1957
King and other southern black ministers founded the
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).
During the spring of 1963, King guided
demonstrations in Birmingham, Alabama, where local white
police officials were known for their anti-black attitudes.
Clashes between the black demonstrators and police hit
newspaper headlines through the world. More mass demonstrations
took place on August 28, 1963, this march attracted
more than 250,000 protesters to Washington D. C. King
delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech
to the demonstrators that day.
During the year following the march,
King's reputation grew, as he became Time magazine's
Man of the Year and, in December 1964, the recipient
of the Nobel Peace Prize. Despite this King faced many
challenges to his leadership. Malcolm
X's message of self-defence and Black Nationalism
expressed the anger of northern, urban blacks more effectively
than King.
Despite many other black leaders strongly
disagreeing with King, he remained committed to the
use of non-violent techniques. Along with this, he now
had a lack of support from national political leaders.
King now found it increasingly hard to achieve his objectives.
It all came to an end when he was assassinated on April
4, 1968, at a garbage workers' strike in Memphis. After
his death, King remained a controversial symbol in the
African-American civil rights struggle and for his belief
in non-violent methods.
