Martin Luther King was born on January 15th, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1954, he became pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. In 1955, after Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat in a bus in Montgomery, he led the black boycott of segregated city bus lines and became the most famous civil-rights leader.

He organized the Southern Christian Conference (SOLO) and he had a pacifist philosophy, of non-violent resistance. He led a march in August 1963 in Washington, DC where there were more than 200 000 people. That’s where he made his famous speech « I Have a dream » .

He was awarded and got the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He died on April 4th, 1968 : he was shot on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel which, in 1991, became a civil-rights museum.

Years after his assassination, in 1983 , a United States Democrat Representative, John Conyers and, a United State Republican Senator, Edward Brooke established a law in Congress to transform MLK’s birthday in a national new federal holiday. This famous day was on the third Monday of January, around his birthday on January 15th. This date changes each year according to the calendar. Martin Luther King Day was made to celebrate his birthday but particularly the big achievements of this influential American civil rights leaders. There are traditions : some schools celebrate the day, pupils or students are learning about King’s work and about his struggle against segregation and racism. More recently, they encourage Americans to spend their time on this day as volunteers in citizen action groups.

Article rédigé par des élèves de la classe de 3ème 1 : Katarina & Chaïma-Lina