“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase”
Good afternoon teachers and fellow students,
A passionate leader, a world renown civil rights activist, a man who changed America. This was Martin Luther King.
King was born into the home of Michael King Sr. and Alberta Williams King in Atlanta, Georgia on the 15th January 1929. Born originally as Michael King Jr. King adopted the name Martin Luther in honour of the German Protestant leader. He was the second of the three children and lived a comfortable life during his years as an infant.
Martin was first exposed to racism when a couple of classmates informed him they could no longer associate with him due to the colour of his skin. Martin’s mother explained to him it was because of the segregated school systems but assured him was just as good as everyone else.
His baptism in May 1936, made little impression on him. As an adolescent King questioned religion and generally felt uncomfortable about it until he renewed his faith and took a bible class in junior year. This led him to make the decision of becoming a priest in later years.
King attended Booker T. Washington High school and was said to be a precocious student. Skipping ninth and eleventh grade, Martin entered Morehouse College at the age of fifteen in 1944. He earned a degree in sociology in 1948 and enlisted at the Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester.
He prospered in his studies and was accepted into many prestigious colleges including Yale and Edinburgh for his doctoral work but enrolled in Boston University in 1951. Here he met and married Coretta Scott in 1953. The pair had four children between them and during this time King completed his Ph.D. in 1955 and become pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.
Some of his main achievements included the Montgomery Bus Boycott, the formation of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, The Birmingham Campaign and his notorious “I Have A