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Birth
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is born. -
Dr. King sends a letter
The Atlanta Constitution publishes King’s letter to the editor stating that black people "are entitled to the basic rights and opportunities of American citizens." -
Dr. King graduates
King receives his bachelor of arts degree in sociology from Morehouse College. -
Marriage
King and Coretta Scott are married at the Scott home near Marion, Alabama. -
Doctorate
King is awarded his doctorate in systematic theology from Boston University. -
Dr. King becomes President
At a mass meeting at Holt Street Baptist Church, the Montgomery Improvement Association(MIA) is formed. King becomes its president. -
King meets JFK
King meets with President John F. Kennedy and urges him to issue a second Emancipation Proclamation to eliminate racial segregation. -
I Have a Dream
The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom attracts more than two hundred thousand demonstrators to the Lincoln Memorial. Organized by A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin, the march is supported by all major civil rights organizations as well as by many labor and religious groups. King delivers his "I Have a Dream" speech. After the march, King and other civil rights leaders meet with President John F. Kennedy and Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson in the White House. -
Nobel Prize
King receives the Nobel Peace Prize at a ceremony in Oslo, Norway. He declares that "every penny" of the $54,000 award will be used in the ongoing civil rights struggle. -
Death
King is shot and killed while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis.