2. Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia. Martin Luther King Jr. attended Booker T. Washington High School where he was a bright student. (He skipped 9 th and 11 th grade) In 1948, Martin Luther King Jr. attended Morehouse College in Atlanta Georgia where he was top of his class. In 1954, Martin Luther King began his first job as a minister in Montgomery, Alabama.

3. On December 1 st, in Montgomery, Alabama Rosa Parks was arrested and jailed because she refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white man Martin led a boycott of the buses in Montgomery, Alabama because of Rosa Parks’ arrest. The boycott lasted 382 days Martin Luther King Jr. was thrown in jail several times because of standing up for equal rights between whites and blacks.

4. In February 1960, a group of African-American students began what became known as the "sit-in" movement in Greensboro, North Carolina. When the students were asked to leave or sit in the colored section the students did not move. Martin Luther King Jr. encouraged students to continue to use nonviolent methods during their protests. By August of 1960, the sit-ins had been successful in ending segregation at lunch counters in 27 southern cities.

5. October 19, 1960, King and 75 students entered a local department store and requested lunch- counter service but were denied. When they refused to leave the counter area, King and 36 others were arrested. John F. Kennedy heard about Martin Luther King’s harsh treatment and discussed ways to end discrimination.

6. On August 28, 1963, the historic March on Washington drew more than 200,000 people in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial. In Washington is where Martin Luther King gave his famous speech “I Have a Dream” speech where he talked about someday all men and women will be treated equal and not different because of their skin color. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vDWWy4CMhE

7. On December 10, 1964 Martin Luther King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. On April 4 1968, King was assassinated on the balcony of the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee by James Earl Ray. The tomb of MLK Jr. is in Atlanta, Georgia. On his stone read “Free at last, Free at last. Thank God Almighty I’m Free at last.”

8. In 1983, the United States Congress dedicated the third Monday in January to be dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr. where we celebrate and honor his life.