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Born in his mother's parents house in Atlanta, Georgia, young King is named after his father, Michael; however, both father and son later change their names to Martin Luther after the German religious leader. https://youtu.be/RXF5FxNUaXo - Adobe Spark video
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Due to King skipping two grades in high school, Martin Luther King, Jr. enrolls in college at the age of 15 for a degree in sociology.
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While working on his doctorate in theology, King met Coretta Scott, a former music student, and they are married in her parents home in Marion, Alabama.
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Rosa Parks is arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery city bus for a white passenger. https://youtu.be/EIn-WgKOiJA - Adobe Spark video
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After Rosa Parks was arrested, a boycott began on the city buses by African American citizens lead by Martin Luther King, Jr. and the newly formed association.
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The U.S. Supreme Court agrees with the decision in Browder v. Gayle declaring Alabama's bus segregation laws unconstitutional thus ending the 381 day boycott. https://youtu.be/r2ewxQ6w5H0
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The SCLC is formed to help coordinate more protests and boycotts after the success of the Montgomery bus boycott.
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After being arrested for protesting without a permit, King writes his famous letter and Birmingham becomes the focus of the civil rights movement.
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At the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, King gives his speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to over 200,000 people. https://youtu.be/_IB0i6bJIjw
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For his work in the civil rights movement, King receives the Nobel Peace Prize with praise for calling for a peaceful, nonviolent resistance to racial discrimination.
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While in Memphis, Tennessee leading protests in support of the Memphis Sanitation Strike, King gives his final speech.
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King is shot and killed on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel by James Earl Ray resulting in riots breaking out across the U.S.
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President Ronald Reagan signed a bill to declare Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as a day to celebrate all of his important civil rights work for equality in the U.S..
