Martin Luther King Jr.: The Most Influential Figure In Western History

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Michael King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. When he was 5 years old his name was changed to Martin Luther King Jr. on a trip to Germany. The name Martin Luther came from the well-known german protester Martin Luther. Martin Luther is one of the most influential figures in western history. His writings are known for spreading the word of the catholic church which began the protests. Martin Luther King Jr. was a middle child between one older sister and younger brother. Growing up he always went to church and sang in the church choir with his family. Sadly until about the age of fifteen his father whipped him regularly. King suffered through depression through most of his life and at the age of 12, he jumped out of a two-story window but survived. Growing up King got noticed for his public speaking and then became the assistant manager for a newspaper delivery station for the Atlanta Journal in 1942 when …show more content…
In April, 1963, King and SCLC began a campaign to stop segregation by doing long protests and sit-ins. At first the protests did not affect the media or police until a bunch of little kids and young adults joined King and his group. The next day of protest turned violent as the police used high-power fire hoses and attack dogs against the protesters, including children, but surprisingly the protests worked. The police officers that injured the protesters were fired and arrested and public places became more open to blacks. Early in this campaign, King was arrested for the 13th time.
After three more big protests they all led up to the biggest one King would ever perform. In all those all protests King wrapped up a total of twenty-nine total arrests and had made his way to five different states in six years. In Washington D.C., 1963, King delivered his famous 17-minute speech, “I Have a Dream,” in front of 250,000 people. The “I Have a Dream” speech is regarded as one of the best speeches ever