What is the significance of mlk

In the wake of his death, a wave of riots swept major cities across the country, while President Johnson declared a national day of mourning. James Earl Ray , an escaped convict and known racist, pleaded guilty to the murder and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.

He later recanted his confession and gained some unlikely advocates, including members of the King family, before his death in After years of campaigning by activists, members of Congress and Coretta Scott King , among others, in President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.

Here are some of the most famous Martin Luther King, Jr. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant. If you can't be a highway, just be a trail. If you can't be a sun, be a star. For it isn't by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. The civil rights movement was a struggle for social justice that took place mainly during the s and s for Black Americans to gain equal rights under the law in the United States.

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, the entire nation pauses in remembrance of a civil rights hero. MLK Day was designed to honor the activist and minister assassinated in , The civil rights leader was born Michael King Jr. It was a stormy night and the weather was bad but the turnout was not. People had gathered to hear Martin Luther King, Jr.

King never chose fear, but always chose courage and determination when fighting for civil rights in the face of oppression, ignorance and violence.

He refused to allow prison, violence or the threat of death sway his end mission. Instead, he stood beside his goal of achieving rights for all through nonviolent protests. King maintained a vision for a more diverse America where all people enjoyed the benefits of equality. During a time when the opposition implemented legislation that withheld rights from people of color and expressed hatred through beatings and killings, Dr.

King continued to take the high road. He realized that violence would play into the scheme of the opposition. He knew that violent retaliation would fit exactly into the assumed mold that many had formed regarding civil rights activists. Because of his commitment to peace, nonviolence and equality, King's civil rights protests made genuine headway in American society.

Without question, Martin Luther King Jr. Even as his oppressors exercised force and brutality, King remained insistent on nonviolence. Instead of responding in kind, he and his members took to church pews and prayed in protest of their violent discrimination. His genuine desire for the country to come together was recognized as a great contribution to America. While jailed for a peaceful protest in , King wrote an eloquent letter highlighting his philosophy of nonviolence. In , King and other leaders of the civil rights movement organized a huge march for equal rights in Washington, D.

With a massive crowd of over , followers , the march protested racial discrimination in schools and the workforce. They demanded minimum wage for all workers. It was the largest gathering in Washington, D. This was the site of King's famous I Have a Dream speech.

His speech marked him as a master orator, capable of punching his points with anaphoras — words or phrases repeated for emphasis — while citing powerful sources, including the Bible and the U. As a result of the march and the speech, the citizens of the nation began to put growing pressure on the presidential administration of Lyndon B.

They encouraged the president to push for civil rights laws to pass through Congress and become recognized on a national level. In , 1, black sanitation workers in Memphis were protesting their terrible working conditions, discrimination and low pay.

It was obvious they were discriminated against when they were sent home without pay while white workers stayed on the job. They started a strike on February 12, Shortly thereafter, Martin Luther King Jr. The strike lasted for 64 days and grew into one of the major civil rights events. This attracted the national news media as well as others who joined the cause, like community leaders and members of the clergy.

The strike finally ended on April 12, , and the city of Memphis agreed to the workers' demands even though more strikes had to be threatened to make them honor the agreement. Its goals were to abolish racial discrimination in many areas including public transportation, employment, voting, and education.