Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He did very well at the segregated public schools he attended. At age 15 King Jr. entered Morehouse College. In 1948 he graduated with a bachelor's degree in sociology. King Jr. then went on to the Crozer Theological Seminary; there he graduated with honors in 1951. After that, he went to Boston University where, in 1955, he earned a doctoral degree in systematic theology. His public speaking abilities started to develop while King Jr. was in college. When he was an undergraduate at Morehouse College, he won a second place price at a speaking contest. Although, he received C's in two public-speaking courses he took his first year at Crozer. By the end of his third year at Crozer however, his professors were astounded by his improvement of public speaking. Throughout his college years, King Jr. was influenced by the struggle of oppressed people. He started studying the teachings of the nonviolent Indian Leader, Mohandas Gandhi. King was also influenced by the sermons of white Protestant ministers who preached against American racism. Benjamin E. Mays was one of the more important people in shaping King Jr.'s thoughts and views. While King Jr. was in Boston, he met a girl who was named Coretta Scott. And in 1953 they were married.
             Soon after Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her bus seat, King Jr. was chosen to be the speaker for the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA). This organization directed the bus boycott that lasted more than a year.
             In 1957, King Jr. helped to form the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). This organization was comprised of black churches and ministers that wanted to challenge racial segregation. Some nonviolent activities that King Jr. led to protest discrimination were marches, demonstrations, and boycotts. Even though King Jr. acted peacefully, the whites acted violently in return. These violent act...