Final answer:
James Earl Ray assassinated Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee, which led to national unrest and highlighted the tension within the civil rights movement.
Step-by-step explanation:
On April 4, 1968, James Earl Ray shot and killed Martin Luther King Jr., a tragic event that severely impacted the vision of racial harmony and justice. Dr. King was in Memphis, Tennessee, to support sanitation workers who were trying to unionize, within the context of a broader civil rights movement experiencing internal strife between advocates of nonviolence and proponents of a more militant approach.
The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. led to widespread violence and riots in cities across the nation, reflecting profound grief and anger within the African American community.