Martin Luther King, Jr. Timeline of Events

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Martin Luther King, Jr.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi...

Timeline of Events

1956

1.30.1956

American civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.'s home is bombed in retaliation for the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

1963

4.16.1963

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. pens his Letter from Birmingham Jail while incarcerated in Birmingham, Alabama for protesting against segregation.

8.28.1963

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom: Martin Luther King, Jr. gives his ''I Have a Dream'' speech

1965

3.25.1965

Civil rights activists led by Martin Luther King, Jr. successfully complete their 4-day 50-mile march from Selma to the capitol in Montgomery, Alabama.

1966

7.10.1966

The Chicago Freedom Movement, led by Martin Luther King, Jr., holds a rally at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. As many as 60,000 people came to hear Dr. King as well as Mahalia Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Peter Paul and Mary.

1967

4.4.1967

Martin Luther King, Jr. delivers his "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence" speech in New York City's Riverside Church.

1968

4.4.1968

Martin Luther King, Jr. is assassinated by James Earl Ray at a motel in Memphis, Tennessee.

4.9.1968

Funeral of Martin Luther King, Jr.

1986

1.20.1986

Martin Luther King, Jr. day is celebrated as a federal holiday for the first time.