The Assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi
Martin Luther King, Jr.Martin Luther King, Jr. posed challenges to segregation and racialdiscrimination in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s through non-violent and peaceful moves and put across his message to the whiteAmericans to help support the cause of the civil rights.After his assassination in 1968 at the prime time of his civil rightsmovement, King became a symbol of protest in the blacks' struggle for Early LifeKing was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. His father servedas pastor of a large Atlanta church, Ebenezer Baptist. King Jr. wasordained as a Baptist minister at the age of 18. (Badger)King attended local segregated public schools and graduated with abachelor's degree in sociology from Morehouse College in 1948. He graduatedwith honors from Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania in 1951. Heearned a doctoral degree in systematic theology from Boston University. King was exposed to influences that related Christian theology to thestruggles of oppressed peoples throughout his academic career. He alsostudied the teachings on non-violent movement of Indi
Gandhi expressed his dismay at the blatant sacrifice ofunity in the process of India's independence when he wrote, "it would be onthe question of Hindu-Moslem unity that my Ahimsa [nonviolence] would beput to its severest test. India must sever the British connection and attain PurnaSwaraj or complete independence. After a full year of struggle, Gandhiwas released from jail and the Indian National Congress was invited to meetwith the British Government. The essay helped Gandhi articulate his concept for nonviolentresistance in English. (Badger)King formed strategic alliances with whites in the North that greatlyhelped influencing public opinion in the United States. His assassination prompted riots in morethan 100 U. Similarities of ConductThere are many similarities between the objectives and achievements of Kingand Gandhi. (King)While working in South Africa, Gandhi read Thoreau's Essay on CivilDisobedience, the same essay that later influenced Martin Luther King, Jr. King fought for the American blacks who were ruled by the American whitesand Gandhi struggled for the native Indians who were ruled by the colonialpower, Britain. In 1893, Gandhimoved to South Africa to work there. (Badger)King and other black leaders organized a massive protest march inWashington, D. King and his SCLC staff escalated anti-segregation marches inBirmingham by encouraging teenagers and schoolchildren to join. King addressed a rally ofmore than 20,000 people in front of the capitol building in Montgomery. In 1919, Britishauthorities announced the Rowlatt Bills, a policy that allowed the BritishIndia government to incarcerate "dangerous" persons in India, without trialor legal representation. Hundreds ofsinging children filled the streets of downtown Birmingham provokingviolent response from police officers who used attack dogs and firefightersagainst the marchers.
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