Question

Martin Luther King .Jr was born ni Atlanta, Georgia, ni 1929. After receiving his doctorate ni theology from Boston University ni 195, he became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church ni Montgomery, Alabama. There, heorganized a382- day bus boycott that led to the 1956 SupremeCourt decision outlawing segregation on Alabama's buses. As leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, he was instrumental in securing the civil rights of Black Americans, using methods based on a philosophy of nonviolent protest. His books include Stride toward Freedom (1958) and Why We Can't Wait (1964). nI 1964, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Hewas assassinated in 1968in Memphis, Tennessee. Background on racial segregation In 1896, the SupremeCourt ruled in Plessyv. Ferguson that "separate but equal" accommodations on railroad cars gave African Americans the equal protection guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. This decision was used to justify separate public facilities- including schools--for Blacks and whites well into the twentieth century. In the mid-1950s, state support for segregation and discrimination against Blacks had begun to be challenged. Supreme Court decisions in 1954 and 1955 declared segregation in public schools and other publicly financed venues unconstitutional, while Blacks and whites alike were calling for an end to discrimination. Their actions took the form of marches, boycotts, and sit-ins (organized protests whose participants refuse to move from a public area. Many whites, however, particularly in the South, vehemently resisted any change in race relations. By 1963, whenKing organized a campaign against segregation in Birmingham, Alabama, tensions ran deep. He and his followers met fierce opposition from the police, as wel as from white moderates, who considered him an "outside agitator." During the demonstrations, King was arrested and jailed for eight days. While imprisoned, he wrote his "Leter from Birmingham Jail" to white clergymen to explain h

Answer 1

Martin Luther King, Jr. was a key figure in the African American Civil Rights Movement, leading peaceful but powerful protests like the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Birmingham campaign. His nonviolent approach and the 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail' became central narratives of the movement. His assassination in 1968 sparked further unrest and violence, showing deep divisions and the continued fight for racial justice.

Step-by-step explanation:

Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement

The most prominent leader of the African American Civil Rights Movement, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., alongside the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), spearheaded nonviolent protests across the South. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a significant victory, leading to the Supreme Court ruling that segregated buses were unconstitutional. King's philosophy of nonviolent resistance was profoundly observed when peaceful protests in Birmingham were met with police violence, garnering international attention.

In 1963, King was incarcerated during the Birmingham campaign and authored the seminal "Letter from a Birmingham Jail," responding to criticisms from white clergymen and advocating for urgent action in securing civil rights. His leadership was abruptly ended with his assassination in 1968, which sparked nation-wide violence and highlighted the ongoing struggle for racial equality and the tensions within the movement.