Martin Luther King Jr.’s achievements

King began his quest for equal rights in 1955 when Rosa Parks, another civil rights activist, refused to give her seat up to a white passenger on a Montgomery Alabama bus. King and his supporters formed the Montgomery Improvement Association and launched a bus boycott which lasted over a year. The boycott proved to be successful, in 1956 Montgomery’s buses became desegregated as a result of Supreme Court rulings. Under the non-violent principles of Mahatma Gandhi, King ignited hope into the eyes of 1000’s of African Americans for equal rights. Early in his career King realized that non-violent protest was the most efficient way of achieving his goal. He states, "I had come to see early that the Christian doctrine of love operating through the Gandhian method of non-violence was one of the most potent weapons available to the Negro in his struggle for freedom"

In seeking to continue and expand the non-violent struggle against discrimination, King, along with other Black ministers, set up the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He traveled to West Africa and India in order to better understand Gandhi’s principles of non-violence. After his return to the United States he moved the SCLC headquarters to Atlanta in order to focus his attention on the south. Although King did not immediately gain massive support, he influenced the actions of Black students across the country. In 1960 Black college students began to launch a series of sit-ins at lunch counters and public places where segregation was existent.

The turning point in King’s career came in 1963 in Birmingham, Alabama. The SCLC launched a major demonstration to protest anti-Black attitudes in the South. Confrontations ensued between unarmed Black demonstrators and Birmingham police who used clubs and attack dogs to quell the crowd. The publication of this demonstration and the incidents which ensued had profound effects across the country. It sparked protests across the country and "prompted President John F. Kennedy to push for passage of new civil rights legislation."

The Birmingham incident and the demonstrations that ensued culminated in the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. More than 250,000 protesters came to Washington to hear King’s most famous speech, his "I have a dream" speech. This speech embodied the spirit and moral basis behind the civil rights movement. Hundreds of thousands of people protested with the hope of encouraging Congress to pass the civil rights bill that President Kennedy had created.

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." 

By 1964 King had established himself as the leading civil rights activist. His non-violent tactics united millions of African Americans to join in on the struggle for equal rights. His efforts helped to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This act outlawed segregation and racial discrimination in public places, employment, and education.

By 1965 King had turned his attention to voter’s rights. King and his followers organized a march from Selma to Montgomery. The protest was in response to state officials who tried to deny Blacks the right to vote. On March 7 the Selma to Montgomery march was halted immediately by police officers using clubs and tear gas. This incident, like the one in Birmingham, brought hundreds of protesters to Selma to attempt the march again. After several tries the SCLC got a court order to proceed and it’s success was "a culmination of a stage of the African American freedom struggle"

A month later President Johnson and Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which increased the amount of southern Blacks registered to vote. Up until the time of his death in 1968 King continued to peacefully protest for equal rights. Despite increasing opposition from new militant organizations and increasing white resistance, King held true to his Gandhian tactic of non-violent protest.

"Violence as a way of achieving racial justice is both impractical and immoral. It is impractical because it is a descending spiral ending in destruction for all. It is immoral because it seeks to humiliate the opponent rather than win his understanding; it seeks to annihilate rather than to convert. Violence is immoral because it thrives on hatred rather than love."  

Martin Luther King Jr.’s influence is of unparalleled comparison. It is testament to his accomplishments that nearly every major city has a street or building named after him. He was able to unite virtually an entire race to stand up and fight for equal rights. His non-violent approach, exceptional oratorical skills, and unique leadership ability took the country by storm. Hundred of thousands came to the support King’s fight. In the face of severe opposition from Black militant groups, racist politicians, and a society full of segregation they, under King’s guidance, were able to force Congress to abolish segregation. Although "this revolution was the product of two centuries of agitation by thousands upon thousands of courageous men and women, King was its culmination. It is impossible to think of the movement unfolding as it did without him at its helm." (Time Magazine, April 13, 1998 ) His movement swept centuries of oppression away from American society. When Americans think of civil rights, they think of Martin Luther King Jr.