Martin Luther King Jr.

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Martin Luther King Jr. is my hero. He was a courageous man, so courageous that he protested the segregation between black and white people. King gained prestige as a civil-rights leader as he worked tirelessly to end segregation using non-violent resistance.

Martin was born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15 where he was originally called Michael Luther King Jr. (Some time later his name became Martin Luther King Jr.) His grandfather was the pastor at Ebenezer Baptist church from 1914 to 1931, and then after his grandfather died his father became pastor and Martin became the co-pastor of Ebenezer Baptist church. Martin attended a segregated high school in Georgia and graduated at the age fifteen. In 1948 he earned a B.A. degree from Morehouse College, where his father and grandfather both attended. For three years Martin studied theology at Crozer Theogical Seminary in Pennsylvania. With the fellowship at Crozer, he began graduate studies at Boston University. In Boston he met and married Coretta Scott. Together they had two sons and two daughters.

Martin Luther King is a hero because of his leadership skills. He accepted the leadership of the first non-violent demonstrators of our time. He organized the bus boycott that ended segregation on buses. Martin was inspired by Gandhi's non-violent protests. He was often arrested, his home was bombed, and he was subjected to personal abuse. However, he became an outstanding leader. King appeared whenever or wherever there was injustice, protest, or action. He directed the peaceful march on Washington D.C. of 250,000 people where he delivered the famous "I Have A Dream" speech.

I chose Martin Luther King to be my hero because of his outstanding leadership skills. He lead the Civil-Right Movement to achieve justice and equality for all people regardless of skin color. He was an outstanding speaker and was able to motivate and inspire people. Likewise, he was brave and bold and was able to withstand the judgments of segregation.

Martin Luther King will be forever remembered as a leader, peacemaker and hero.