Martin Luther King

1. Martin Luther King Key events & successes to mid-60’s Influences on King & black population Similarities with Gandhi Sarah Bennett, 15th January 2010

2. Brief summary of his life leading up to early part of civil rights movement • Born 15 January 1929 as Michael King • Enters Moorhouse College 1944 (aged 15), graduates 1947 • Studies at Crozer Theological Seminary, graduates 1951, begins doctoral study at Boston University • Marries Coretta Scott 1953 • Becomes pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, Montgomery 1954 • Receives doctorate 1955, first child born (has 4 in total) • Involved in Montgomery Bus Boycott Dec 1955-Dec 1956 • Forms Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) in 1957 • Writes ‘Stride towards Freedom’ 1958 (attacked during book signing) • Visits India Feb-Mar 1959

3. Brief summary of the key civil rights protests in the first half of the ’60s • Greensboro sit ins, Feb 1960 – students followed King’s teaching • King’s non-violent strategy adopted all over Deep South, e.g. Freedom Riders, May 1961 • King arrested and jailed during protest march, Spring 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama • Kennedy vote and Civil Rights Bill 1963 • ‘March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom’ – 28th Aug 1963, MLK delivered famous ‘I have a dream’ speech • Kennedy assassination, Johnson and Civil Rights Act, June 1964 • Mass marches from Selma to Montgomery, March 1965 • Congress pass Voting Rights Act empowering national government to register those whom states refused to put on the voting list

4. From 1964 to assassination • Awarded Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 1964 • After 2 key pieces of legislation achieved, King focused on poverty, recognising race and economic issues closely aligned • 3rd April 1967, speech opposing Vietnam war • ‘Where do we go from here: Chaos or Community’ (1967) • Civil rights movement increasingly radicalised • King had made enemies along the way • Assassinated 4th April 1968 during a visit to Memphis, Tennessee

5. Influences on MLK • Daddy King • College and seminary influences • Social philosophers such as Thoreau • Mohandas Gandhi • Inspiration • Theory > practical application • Satyagraha

6. As Leaders: Leadership Importance of religion Identified with poor masses Fundraisers/campaigns Appeal Power Racism Patriots As Men: Backgrounds Inner struggles Attitudes to women Courageous Master communicators Similarities and differences betweenGandhi & King

7. Influence of Gandhi on U.S. black population • Many African-Americans adopted Gandhi’s teachings as way of life, not just MLK • But influence there before MLK • Press coverage & visits from Gandhi’s followers to US • MLK as bridge between ‘Gandhi-inspired activists and church-centred followers of Jesus’ (Kapur)

8. Summary of key points • King combined ideas and philosophies drawn from different cultural traditions • Both King and Gandhi combined profound religious faith with deep social involvement • Civil Rights Movement • Montgomery as a result of Gandhi’s influence/earlier decades • Period of 1960-5, high levels of sustained activity, not just King & SCLC) • ‘Both (King & Gandhi) reinterpreted and reapplied values deeply embedded in their cultures to great advantage for the cause of justice and nonviolence’ (Nojeim)

9. Bibliography • Nojeim, Michael – Gandhi and King • Kapur, Sudarshan – Raising up a Prophet: The African-American Encounter with Gandhi • Oates, Stephen – Let the Trumpet Sound: A Life of Martin Luther King • Lewis, David – Martin Luther King: A critical biography • Ling, Peter – Martin Luther King Jr. • Ed. by Ward, Brian & Badger, Tony – The Making of Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Movement • Branch, Taylor – Parting the Waters • Dalton, Dennis – Mahatma Gandhi • King, Mary – Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. • Ed. by Roberts, Adam & Garton Ash, Timothy – Civil Resistance and Power Politics (chapter 4)