Introduced to racial discrimination and prejudice at an early age, King's experiences helped him to become a great leader and advocate of equal rights for all.

An excellent pupil, King was admitted to Morehouse College at the age of fifteen, and graduated as at eighteen. He continued his studies at Pennsylvania's Crozer Theological Seminary and Boston University. Upon graduating from Boston University (King met Coretta Scott here) with a Ph.D. in theology, King moved to Montgomery, Alabama, to serve as minister at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. He and Coretta were joined in marriage on June 18, 1953.

Martin Luther King, Jr. had great respect for Mohandas Gandhi, and he later used Gandhi's examples of passive resistance in his own role as a leader. King also studied the teachings of Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862). Even though he was met with violence, death threats, and jail time, King continued to spread the word of nonviolent resistance. On one occasion, his house was even bombed. King had a near-death experience on September 20, 1958, when an insane lady named Izola Curry stabbed him in the chest with a steel letter opener during a book signing. King had to undergo surgery to remove the letter opener.

For his efforts, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, and he was selected as Time magazine's first African-American "Man of the Year."

[ For more information about King's leadership and actions during the Civil Rights Movement, please read the other articles in this section of the site.]  

At the young age of thirty nine, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968, at a motel in Memphis, Tennessee. A forty-year-old white man named James Earl Ray was accused of killing King. 

In early March of 1968, King had traveled to Memphis in hopes of bringing about better conditions for striking sanitation workers. There, he decided to hold a march. A riot took place instead, and King was forced to return to Atlanta, Georgia. He would return to Memphis on April 3, 1968, in hopes of holding a successful march. 

Prior to his March 1968 visit to Memphis, King had been trying to lead a Poor People's Campaign to fight poverty. Unfortunately, King did not have much luck. He also spoke up against the Vietnam War, which caused President Lyndon B. Johnson to become angry.  

James Earl Ray, an escaped convict who had been missing since April 23, 1967, posed as a Harvey Lowmeyer and purchased a 30.06 Remington rifle, a telescopic sight, and ammunition at the Birmingham, Alabama Aeromarine Supply Company. Ray traveled to Atlanta, Georgia, in hopes of tracking down King, but discovered that the African-American leader would be in Memphis, Tennessee, instead. There, Ray used the alias John Willard to check into a boarding house. (Ray also used the names Eric Starvo Galt and Ramon George Sneyd as covers.) It was from a bathroom window in this boarding house that Ray shot and ended King's life.  

On April 3, 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. had spoken to a crowd of 2,000 in Memphis, Tennessee. He told the crowd that he might not live to see his dream of racial equality come true. He assured his listeners, however, that their struggles for racial equality would one day be rewarded, and that they would "get to the promised land." Ironically, the words of Dr. King's last speech became reality. He would be assassinated the following evening at 6:01 pm. on April 4, 1968. 

It took over two months, but the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was finally able to track down Ray. He had escaped to London, England, and the FBI had received the help of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Scotland Yard. On March 10, 1969, James Earl Ray was sentenced to ninety nine years in jail after pleading guilty to murdering King.   

Following the release of the news of Martin Luther King Jr.'s death, his assassination was met with violence in the form of riots, fires, and gunfire. Unfortunately, King's peace-promoting teachings were not followed, and the racial tensions caused many injuries and deaths. On April 7, 1968, three days after the assassination, President Lyndon B. Johnson tried to heal the wounds of the nation by setting the day aside for national mourning. The next day, a peaceful march was held in Memphis. On April 9, Dr. King's funeral was held with 100,000+ in attendance. He was buried in South View Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia, 

King's grave marker bore the following words:

After Dr. King's shocking assassination, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) needed a new president. Ralph David Abernathy (1926-1990) - one of the founding members of the SCLC - became the new leader. Abernathy's term as president lasted from 1968-1977.

In 1969, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Change was opened in Atlanta by Coretta Scott King. Today, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is celebrated on the third Monday of each January. This national holiday was first celebrated on January 20, 1968, and was signed into legislation by President Ronald Regan on November 2, 1983. 

Dr. King's memory continues to live on even to this day. Numerous hospitals, schools, libraries, bridges, forests, parks, postage stamps, etc. bear his name, image, and/or work. Examples include the Martin Luther King Memorial Library in Washington, D.C., the Dr. Martin Luther King Bridge in St. Louis, Missouri, and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Hospital in Los Angeles, California. All of these memorials, monuments, and tributes help to keep his memory alive.

To see pictures, hear soundclips, and learn more about Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement, visit The Seattle Times at
[ http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/mlk ].