301
Public sPeaker
Martin luther king, Jr.’s words
inspired millions of americans,
black and white. at the august 1963 march on
Washington D.c., king made a speech that has since
become famous. He said, “i have a dream that one
day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning
of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident;
that all men are created equal.”in 1963, a baPtist Minister from alabama led 250,000 people in a
march on Washington, D.c., and delivered a moving and powerful speech.
He was Martin luther king, Jr., and his mission in life was to achieve equality
and freedom for african americans through peaceful means. under his
leadership, the civil rights movement won many victories against segregation
laws; laws that prevented blacks from voting, separated blacks from whites
in schools and other places, and gave white people better opportunities
and more freedom. Martin luther king, Jr. encouraged people to practice
nonviolent protest: demonstrations, “sit-ins,” and peaceful disobedience
of the segregation laws. king went to jail several times and faced constant
threats of violence and death, but he continued to work for civil rights.
some white people hated him because he wanted to win more rights for
black people, and some black people disliked him because he refused to
use more extreme and violent methods. king was assassinated in 1968, but
his dream of a country without racial discrimination lives on today. in 1986,
the united states began to observe a national holiday in his name.civil rigHts
MoveMent
black americans
remained second-
class citizens
throughout the
southern states until
very recently. they were
not allowed to vote, and
restrictions were placed
on where they could sit on
buses and in restaurants.
During the late 1950s,
a movement arose that
demanded equal rights for
all americans. Martin luther
king, Jr. and others organized
nonviolent protests designed
to force changes in the law.
in 1964-65, racial discrimination
was finally outlawed throughout
the united states.Martin Luther
King, jr.
Find out more
civil rights
Human rights
slavery
united states, history of1929 born, atlanta, georgia.
1954 baptist minister.
1955 earns PhD in
Philosophy.
1955-56 leads Montgomery
bus boycott.
1957 southern christian
leadership conference.
1963 March on Washington,
D.c.
1964 nobel Peace Prize.
1965 selma-Montgomery
march.
1968 assassinated.
1986 Holiday established.bus boycott
in December 1955, rosa Parks, a black seamstress who
worked in an alabama department store, was arrested
for refusing to give up a bus seat reserved for white
people. For one year, Martin luther king, Jr. and
his friends persuaded people to boycott (refuse to
use) every bus in Montgomery, alabama, until the
segregation of the bus seats was declared illegal.US_301_King_Martin.indd 301 29/01/16 10:30 am